Sang-Moon Bae leads the Northern Trust Open after firing a 66 in the second round. Bae is at nine-under total, one shot ahead of Aaron Baddeley and Robert Garrigus.
Bae won the HP Byron Nelson Championship last season, and has been a member of the PGA Tour since 2012.
Aaron Baddeley birdied his final four holes to shoot a six-under 65, and climb into a tie for second place. He won the Northern Trust Open in 2011, and is happy to be in a position to win again at Riviera, “it’s good to be back out there where you have a chance to win, and especially around here, I love it around here.”
Garrigus shot a 67 for the second consecutive day to tie Baddeley at eight-under. He hasn’t played well at Riviera in the past, but decided to change how he felt about the course, and it has worked for him. Garrigus said from the first hole on Thursday he convinced himself that he loves Riviera.
Charlie Beljan is two back of Bae at seven-under. Beljan shot a three-under 68 in the second round, and is extremely confident heading into the weekend, “I haven’t made too many weekends in my career but when I have, I’ve made the most of them.”
Beljan also attributes his good play to a change in his mindset, “Once I make the cut, I just see how far up that leaderboard I can move, so if I can move that mind‑set to Thursday and Friday, which I did this week, I think it’s going to be very beneficial for my career in the long run.”
Beljan has made the cut in 20 of 57 tournaments on the PGA Tour.
Dustin Johnson, Jim Furyk, Brian Harman, and William McGirt are all tied for fifth place at six-under.
Johnson birdied his first two holes then cooled off considerably to shoot a one-under 70. Furyk is playing well with his second consecutive three-under 68.
Also in the mix are Jordan Spieth, Jimmy Walker, Keegan Bradley, and Kevin Stadler at four-under (T14).
Link to leaderboard.
