CROMWELL, Conn. – Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele seemed on the verge of using Friday afternoon on the back nine at TPC River Highlands to set a up a Saturday showdown in the Travelers Championship.
And then McIlroy stumbled twice with a quadruple bogey on the 12th hole and a double bogey on the 15th, giving Schauffele the opportunity to pull away down the stretch as he shot his second straight 7-under-par 63 for a five-stroke lead heading to the weekend.
Schauffele, the 28-year-old American with five PGA Tour career wins and a gold medal from last year’s Tokyo Olympics, made the turn at 31 with four birdies on the front nine, then added three more on Nos. 11, 14 and 17.
He has hit 33 of 36 greens in regulation and is the only player in the tournament without a bogey. His closest call so far was Friday at the par-3 16th, where he his tee shot found the rough behind a greenside bunker.
“It plays really interesting with the wind swirling through there,” Schauffele said. “It was my least committed swing of the week, and just really happy to get up and down there and save par.”