ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. - Charles Howell III is playing some of his best golf when he least expected it.
Coming from a missed cut last week in Mexico to a tournament where he missed the cut last year, Howell kept bogeys off his card for the second straight day and was just as good Friday on the tougher of two layouts at Sea Island Resort.
He shot a 6-under-par 64 on the Seaside Course and matched the best 36-hole score of his PGA Tour career to build a three-shot lead in the RSM Classic.
"You just never know what's around the corner in this game," said the 39-year-old Augusta native, who hasn't won on tour since February 2007.
"I thought I played pretty good in Mexico and just missed the cut there. Came here, I like it here, I didn't really know what to expect, and then this happens. So it's a crazy game and we're reminded of it daily. This is another reminder."
Howell was at 14-under 128, his best two-day total on tour since the Las Vegas Invitational in 2003, when it was a 90-hole event. He was three shots ahead of rookie Cameron Champ and Jason Gore, who only recently was certified as an insurance salesman and found out just five days ago there was room for him at Sea Island.
Champ and Gore also played on the Seaside and turned out similar rounds. Each shot a 63 with one bogey and eight birdies, with half coming on the final four holes in both cases.
In fourth place at 9 under was Nick Watney, who shot an 8-under 64 on the Plantation Course, with Ryan Blaum (65 Seaside), Brian Harman (68 Plantation) and David Hearn (66 Plantation) tied for fifth another stroke back.
All four Baylor School graduates on the PGA Tour started the final official PGA Tour event of the calendar year, but just two will be around for the weekend, when the final two rounds will be played on Seaside. Luke List (68 Seaside) was tied for 21st at 5 under, and Harris English (70 Plantation) was tied for 49th at 3 under. The cut was at 2 under, and that left out Keith Mitchell (72 Plantation) at 1 under and Stephan Jaeger (77 Plantation).
Also missing the cut was Athens, Tennessee, native Eric Axley, who went from a 69 on the Plantation to a 78 on the Seaside.
Thompson takes charge
NAPLES, Fla. - Lexi Thompson, who is looking for her first LPGA Tour win of the year, shot a 5-under 67 at the CME Group Tour Championship and moved into first place on the leaderboard at 12 under.
Thompson hit all 18 greens in regulation and hasn't dropped a shot through two rounds. She was three shots clear of Brittany Lincicome (71) and first-round leader Amy Olson (72).
If Thompson wins, she would become the 26th unique champion on tour this season. Only four women have won multiple tournaments in 2018. Player of the year Ariya Jutanugarn, the world's top-ranked female golfer, has three wins, as does Sung Hyun Park. Nasa Hataoka and Brooke Henderson are two-time winners, while 21 other women have prevailed once.
The tournament within the tournament this weekend is the conclusion of the Race to the CME Globe, with Jutanugarn now in control of that again. She's one of five women who entered this event with the best chance of taking that trophy and $1 million bonus. She was back atop the projected standings after shaking off a bogey-bogey-bogey start to her second round to shoot a 71 and get to 3 under, tied for 20th on the leaderboard.
Hataoka, who had a bogey-free first round to move into the top spot in the projected points standings, went the other way Friday with a 76 and was tied for 13th.
Wallace moves to top
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Matt Wallace took his shots on time and took the lead at the World Tour Championship.
The 28-year-old Englishman, who was fined 3,000 pounds ($3,800) for slow play in the first round of the European Tour season finale, shot a 7-under 65 in the second round for a one-stroke lead over Adrian Otaegui (68), Jordan Smith (68) and Danny Willett (67).
Wallace, whose three victories this season lead the tour, was at 11-under 133 overall.
Patrick Reed (66) was fifth at 9 under, with Kiradech Aphibarnrat (66), Dean Burmester (65), Tommy Fleetwood (67) and Rory McIlroy (67) another stroke back and tied for sixth.
Francesco Molinari dropped outside the top 25 with three bogeys in his last six holes on the way to a 73, Tommy Fleetwood a chance to win the Race to Dubai and the distinction of the tour's top golfer.
Molinari was tied for 27th at 3 under. To successfully repeat as European champion, Fleetwood needs to win the tournament and hope Molinari finishes low enough.
Ace turns An's round
SYDNEY - Byeong-Hun An's hole-in-one took him from a mediocre second round at the Australian Open to a much better day, one that ended with him sharing the 36-hole lead at The Lakes Golf Club.
The 27-year-old South Korean's 7-iron shot on the par-3, 197-yard 15th hole hit the green, bounced twice and rolled into the cup, taking him from a stroke behind the leaders to one in front. He finished with a 3-under 69 and was tied at 8 under overall with Max McCardle (66), a 33-year-old Australian who is No. 1,062 in the World Golf Ranking.
An, who is ranked 51st, said he didn't pay any attention to the distance before landing his ace, the third of his life. He won a $14,000 watch for this one.
"Yardage I'm not sure, because my caddie just told me to hit that, and it worked out," An said. "I hit it good, everything was perfect. Fading from the left to the hole."
Tied for second were Matt Kuchar (67), Jake McLeod (67) and amateur David Micheluzzi (69). Kuchar is coming off a victory in the Mayakoba Golf Classic, his first PGA Tour win since April 2014.