After a challenging opening round at the newly redesigned Caves Valley Golf Club — marked by scorching heat and a two-hour rain delay — players returned Friday for Round 2 rested, recalibrated and with adjustments made.
But even with the improved conditions and fresh approaches, one thing didn’t change: Robert MacIntyre’s firm control and his place at the top of the leaderboard.
“It’s only 36 holes gone, there’s a long way to go,” he said. “I’m comfortable with who I am, I’m comfortable with the team around me, and I’m comfortable on this golf course.”
The 29-year-old Scotsman followed up his blistering 62 in Thursday’s first round with a 6-under-par 64 in the second round of the BMW Championship on Friday, extending his lead and moving to 14-under for the tournament. He’s five shots ahead of the world’s top-ranked player, Scottie Scheffler, who went bogey-free himself Friday.
The five-shot lead is one shy of the record through 36 holes for the 122-year tournament.
“You’ve just got to be on the right side of the holes. Everyone will say it, if you’re on the wrong side of the holes it’s going to be carnage out here,” MacIntyre said. “I feel like this week I’ve really done a good job of getting it underneath the hole to be able to be aggressive with an uphill putt.”
MacIntyre, who closed his first round with six consecutive birdies, opened Friday with another birdie on his first hole. He tallied six birdies for the round and, more importantly, avoided critical mistakes — recovering several times to avoid bogeys. While his putting led the way on Thursday, MacIntyre credited improved iron play for his continued success.
“I’ve played beautifully the last two days,” he said. “Yesterday the putter was on fire. Today, I felt like my iron play was exceptional. But I’ve been putting in the work the last couple of weeks to improve on what I was doing since the Wyndham.”
Scheffler continued his strong tournament, shooting his 15th consecutive round in the 60s on the PGA Tour. He shot a 65 on Friday, placing him in sole possession of second place and 9-under-par after two rounds.
“Bogey-free is always nice. I would have liked to get to have gotten a couple better looks down the stretch, but didn’t hit as many fairways the last few holes,” said Scheffler, whose round included five birdies and no bogeys. “With the way the holes are shaped, you’ve got to be in play, and I did a good job of saving pars when I needed to on the back nine.”
Scheffler, who once again played with Ricky Fowler, left an impression on the buzzing crowd as he was able to play another solid round and close the gap between himself and Macintyre heading into the weekend.
“I knew kind of going into today that I was going to be fighting a little bit of an uphill battle,” he said. “Still, I did a good job of hanging in there and staying in the tournament.”
Scheffler birdied three of his first five holes and went out 32. After birdies on Nos. 11 and 12 left him 5-under for his round, he closed his round with six straight pars.
MacIntyre played Friday with Hideki Matsuyama, and his performance may have helped fuel his playing partner. Matsuyama shot a 6-under 64 of his own — matching MacIntyre and improving by five shots from Round 1.
“It’s always good when your playing partner is playing well and you’re not seeing wild shots, you’re seeing good shots.” Macintyre said. “It makes it far easier when you’re trying to execute something yourself. When you see something happening before you, it frees you up a little bit.”
Matsuyama also carded six birdies, and moved into fourth place at 7-under for the tournament.
Ludvig Åberg matched MacIntyre and Matsuyama for the low-round of the day, with his own 64. Åberg and Matsuyama were among the biggest movers on the leaderboard Friday. Åberg jumped four spots to reach solo third after two rounds.
“Overall [I was] pleased with the way I played, pleased with the way I was sort of controlling the ball flights,” Åberg said. “It’s a tough course. You’ve got to drive it well. You’ve got to hit fairways. The fairway bunkers are quite penalizing with the big lips. So far I’ve been keeping myself out of those, which has been nice.”
Other notable risers after two rounds include Maverick McNeeley, who also shot a round low 64 after hitting seven birdies including a stretch of four in a row on the front nine. He jumped 10 spots on the leaderboard, currently sitting in a tie for fifth.
All eyes remain on Macintyre heading into Saturday’s third round —including Scheffler, who remains in striking distance. But the tournament’s pacesetter says he’s focused on staying confident and finishing the job, even with the world’s No. 1 golfer bearing down on him.
“I believe I’m able to compete at this level,” MacIntyre said. “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe that, and I’ve had so many experiences in my life that have helped me to get here.”
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