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Wells Fargo Championship 36 Hole Recap and Weekend Preview

By Ryan Andrade

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There are plenty of interesting storylines as we head into the weekend in Charlotte for the Wells Fargo Championship.

As the Wells Fargo Championship goes to the weekend the long-hitting Andrew Loupe leads at 8-under par. Loupe turned in a 1-under par 71 on Friday after he blitzed the course on Thursday with a 65. It’s kind of funny that Loupe is playing so well this week. He is coming into this event after missing 4 of his last 5 cuts.

Despite his length off the tee, Loupe has struggled with his iron play – he ranks outside the top-150 in greens in regulations  on the season. So far, however, Loupe is currently ranked 2nd in strokes gained tee to green. That is in large part the reason why he is currently in control of this tournament.

Right on his heels, however, is Roberto Castro who sits at 7-under par. He can thank shots like this for that:

Castro hasn’t played his best golf of late. In fact, Pebble Beach back in February was his last top-25 on the PGA TOUR. This week has been very nice for Castro ball striking wise – he is currently leading the Wells Fargo field in strokes gained tee to green.

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Phil Mickelson has started off his tournament very nicely as he sits only 3 shots back heading into the weekend. Phil has been his usual wild self off the tee. It’s been the putter, however, that has seemed to keep him in contention. He currently ranks 6th in strokes gained putting. If Phil can find some more consistency with his ball striking, he is going to be tough to beat. He is still looking for his first win on the PGA TOUR since the 2013 Open Championship.

Rickie Fowler is sitting in the group at 5-under par with Phil. The 2012 winner here at Quail Hollow shot a 4-under par 68 on Friday to really climb back up into the thick of things. Fowler has struck the ball beautifully. As a result, he ranks 4th in strokes gained tee to green. He could easily be up there where Andrew Loupe is had he knocked in a few more this week. He still has plenty of time to get up there, however.

The pre-tournament favorite was defending champion Rory McIlroy. After just an off day on Thursday, McIlroy bounced back in his 2nd round for 69. It was a score that could of easily been better, after he finished bogey-bogey. Nonetheless he is back in the Wells Fargo mix, and nobody can make up shots at this course like Rory McIlroy. Shots like these can help.

Some other notables in the Wells Fargo field are the Englishman Justin Rose who is currently 4 shots back. The Aussie Adam Scott, who will be looking to get back the form he had back on the Florida swing, is back at 1-under par for the championship. Patrick Reed and Hideki Matsuyama are 8 and 9 shots back respectively, and Henrik Stenson uncharacteristically misses the cut at 3 over-par.

Next: Wells Fargo Championship Power Rankings

With all these big names chasing, it’s going to be some entertainment for all of you this weekend! How’s your Wells Fargo fantasy golf team doing?

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