Scheffler takes two-stroke lead over Thomas and Bhatia

Scottie Scheffler leads Hero World Challenge with 8-under-64, followed by Justin Thomas and Akshay Bhatia.

Scottie Scheffler was in a hurry to assert his supremacy as the second round of the Hero World Challenge got underway under bright skies at the Albany course on Friday. 

The defending champion notched up seven birdies on the front nine (making par on the fifth and eighth) and one more in the 14th to return a card of 8-under-64 and a two-day total of 131 for a two-stroke lead over fellow-Major winner Justin Thomas and the fast-rising Akshay Bhatia.

“I didn’t really have to make very many long birdie putts on the front nine. I just was really solid on the greens and was able to hit it close as well,” was the World No. 1’s matter-of-fact response to a query on making six birdies over the first seven holes.

While Thomas, second overnight, played characteristically well for a 67, with five birdies and a dropped shot, it was the debutant Bhatia who caught one’s attention. 

The 22-year-old, wiry leftie with two PGA Tour titles to his name, made seven birdies with three of them on par-5 holes but also had a bogey on the eighth hole. With 14 birdies, he is tied with Scheffler for most birdies through two rounds.

For overnight leader Cameron Young, it was a round to forget. Starting at 64, he had to suffer the horrors of six bogeys and one double bogey (on the 18th) and a 75 pushed him down the leaderboard to tied-10.

Leading scores (after second round): 131: Scottie Scheffler (67, 64); 133: Akshay Bhatia (67,66), Justin Thomas (66, 67); 135: Keegan Bradley (68, 67); 137: Sepp Straka (69, 68), Sungjae Im (69, 68), Ludwig Aberg (67, 70)