Tournament Notes and Quotes:
Canada’s Nick Taylor 🇨🇦 shot a career-best (62) and is the 36-hole leader/co-leader for the second time in his PGA Tour career and at (-12), holds a two-shot lead over five players at (-10). Taylor converted his other second-round lead into a tournament win at the 2020 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Chris Kirk is among the group at (-10) and is in his last start under his Major Medical Exemption. Kirk needs to earn 148.934 FedEx Cup points to remain in that category for the rest of the season.
Hideki Matsuyama is (-9) after shooting (28) on the front nine, his career-best nine-hole score and the third front-nine 28 in SONY Open in Hawaii tournament history (since 1983).
This is the third year with at least five rounds of (62) or better in the first two rounds at the Sony Open in Hawaii (since 1983). Tournament players in 2015 and 2017 also had five scores of 62 or better before the weekend.
Charles Howell III is T-XLIV at (-V) is XX-for-XX in making the cut at the Sony Open in Hawaii. (For you non-Roman numeral readers, that’s 20-for-20).
SONY Open in Hawaii Leaderboard
(After two rounds)
Nick Taylor 66-62 – 128 (-12)
Stewart Cink 67-63 – 130 (-10)
Webb Simpson 65-65 – 130 (-10)
Russell Henley 66-64 – 130 (-10)
Vaughn Taylor 64-66 – 130 (-10)
Chris Kirk 65-65 – 130 (-10)
Full Leaderboard (link)
What They’re Saying:
Nick Taylor Leads at SONY Open in Hawaii (Bleacher Report)
Eagle on 18th Gives Taylor Lead (Associated Press)
DeChambeau Knows Cause of Dizzy Spell at Augusta (PGA Tour com)
Players OK with the Late Breaking “O.B” - (Golf Channel)
#SportsBiz, Sporting Goods and the Golf Industry
Thomas Loses Ralph Lauren After Slur Incident (ESPN)
WGC-Mexico Moved to Florida (PGA Tour com)
On This Day in Golf History:
January 16, 2000 - Paul Azinger won for the first time on the PGA Tour since his 1993 victory at the PGA Championship and after his recovery from cancer diagnosis. Azinger defeated Aussie Stuart Appleby at the SONY Open by shooting a five-under (65) in the final round. The win came 10 days after Azinger’s 40th birthday and about seven years since missing most of the ‘93 season recovering from lymphoma found in right shoulder. It was Azinger’s 12th win on tour. (Courtesy Randy Walker), Author of On This Day in Golf History, available via Amazon.com and by clicking HERE
The Basics:
SOCIAL MEDIA: #PGATour #FedEXCup @SonyOpenHawaii #SonyOpenHawaii (Join us for some LIVE tweeting during the telecasts).
TV COVERAGE: (All on GOLF CHANNEL) Saturday, Jan. 16th: 7pm-10:30pm ET) and Sunday, January 17th (6pm-10:00pm ET). Golf Central Pregame will be on at 6:00pm ET.
PGA TOUR RADIO COVERAGE: Sat - 5:00pm-10:30pm (ET); and Sunday (5:00pm-10:00pm ET) - Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio or online via PGATour.com
Partin’ Putt:
Sony Open in Hawaii - Round Two Highlights