Scheffler finishes strong, shares lead with Aberg, Detry at Pebble Beach Pro-Am
Scottie Scheffler had another exquisite round tee-to-green and even got a pair of long putts to fall on his way to an 8-under 64 at Pebble Beach, the low round of the week that gave him a share of the lead Friday in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Ludvig Aberg began his round by making putts of 40, 35 and 30 feet on the opening four holes. That carried the Swede to a 65. Scheffler and Aberg were joined by Thomas Detry, who lost a few shots coming in at Pebble Beach for a 70.
They were at 11-under 1333.
Patrick Cantlay was poised to join them except for missing a 10-foot birdie putt on the 17th at Pebble Beach, and then hitting his tee shot on the 18th onto the rocks, forcing him to scramble for a hard-earned par and a 70. He was one shot behind.
Justin Thomas did everything right except on the greens in his round of 68, leaving him two shots behind going into a most unpredictable weekend.
The rain has fallen mostly overnight, with a 30-minute window of light showers early in the day, just like Thursday. But there appears to be no dodging a big storm due to arrive on the weekend, the worst of the rain and wind Sunday.
The pro-am portion of this reimagined tournament ended Friday. Rory McIlroy is having a rough time and shot 74 at Pebble Beach, leaving him at 145 and 12 shots behind. But at least he had a good partner. McIlroy and Jeff Rhodes, a managing partner at TGL Capital who plays off a 9 handicap index, won the pro-am at 18-under par.
Now the amateurs — already reduced in number from 156 to 80 because Pebble Beach is now a signature event — leave the course and turn it over to the PGA Tour players.
The leading nine players going into the weekend all played Friday at Pebble Beach, an advantage when the wind was down and the conditions were soft. Collin Morikawa had a 70 at Spyglass Hill and was among those four shots behind.
Nick Dunlap, the U.S. Amateur champion who turned pro after he won The American Express two weeks ago, continued to have a rough time. He shot 74 at Spyglass Hill and was at the bottom of the leaderboard.