PGA Tour: Barbasol Championship 36-Hole Recap
Former PGA Tour winner Jhonattan Vegas’ second round 60 gave him a six-stroke lead heading into the weekend at the Barbasol Championship.
Eleven times on the PGA Tour this season, 17-under-par would have been enough to win or at least reach a playoff. At the Barbasol Championship in Opelika, Alabama, that score is only the 36-hole pace, set by Jhonattan Vegas. The Venezuelan has taken just 125 swings through two days at the Grand National course and put up video game numbers on Friday, carding a 60.
Instead of dwelling on his failure to qualify for The Open Championship at Royal Troon, Vegas has found a gear we haven’t seen from him since 2011. He grabbed a share of the lead after round one thanks to an opening 65. Then, things got downright nutty during his outward nine on Friday (holes 10-18). After a couple pars to begin the round, Vegas went birdie-eagle-birdie-birdie-birdie-ace-birdie to post a front nine 28.
The 59 watch was in full effect, and after picking up another birdie on his 11th hole (No. 2), Vegas sat at nine-under, needing to complete his final seven holes in three-under to become just the seventh man in PGA Tour history to shoot a 59. A bogey on the 13th all but ended his chances, but a pair of birdies to top off the round tied him with none other than Sung Kang (AT&T Pebble Beach, Monterey Course) for the lowest round of the season.
Low scoring across the board resulted in a two-under cut line, but no one could keep up with Vegas’ heroics. Hudson Swafford is the leading chaser at 11-under-par, and on any other day he would have been the big story. Despite a double on his card, Swafford signed for a second round 63 to work his way into the final group.
Fan favorite and recent Auburn grad Michael Johnson (67-65) is making a splash in his professional debut. Johnson sits at 10-under-par and will be thrown into the deep end right away with a late tee time Saturday, playing with Vegas and Swafford.
Live Feed
FanSided
Despite Vegas’ commanding lead, the tournament is far from over. Vegas ranks 147th on the PGA Tour in third round scoring (71.60) and 82nd in final rounds (71.00). If he doesn’t keep the pedal to the metal, expect someone to make a run at him before it’s all said and done.
A sextet of players is tied for fourth at nine-under-par, headed by David Toms, one of two major champions in the field.
The other one, first round co-leader Angel Cabrera, shot even-par on Friday and is tied for 16th at six-under.
Other notables include: T12. Ben Crane (-7), T16. Spencer Levin (-6), T29. Will Wilcox, Boo Weekley (-5), T42. Jason Bohn (-4), T56. KJ Choi (-3), MC. Lee McCoy (-1), Andrew Landry (E), Scott Stallings (+1), Ken Duke (+1), Hunter Mahan (+2), WD. Camilo Villegas
A full leaderboard can be found here.
Live coverage on Saturday and Sunday can be seen on the Golf Channel between 3-6 p.m EST.
Next: Looking Back at Royal Troon's Eight Champions
Who’s your pick to win the Barbasol Championship? Let us know by reaching out on Facebook or Twitter, and keep it here at Pro Golf Now for more PGA Tour news.