NAPLES, Fla. — There was plenty of movement on the leaderboard during Saturday’s second round at the 2022 QBE Shootout.
Teams jockeyed for position to put themselves in contention ahead of Sunday’s final round, but one thing remains the same Saturday night as it was Friday: the names at the top.
Charley Hoffman and Ryan Palmer continued their strong play, carding a 10-under 62 in the second-round modified alternate shot format at Tiburon Golf Club. It was a fairly stress-free performance from the duo, who are pairing up for the first time but have plenty of experience at the QBE Shootout. The most difficult shot they faced was arguably a par putt on 18, which Palmer converted with ease.
“I’m surprised how low I’d say the field went,” Hoffman said. “Obviously sort of benign conditions, but you’ve still got to execute and hit golf shots around this place. Obviously 10 under is a pretty good score.”
Neither has won before, but they’ll take a two-shot lead into Sunday, the same lead they had after the first round.
Charley Hoffman/Ryan Palmer set the lowest opening 36-hole score in QBE Shootout history (56-62–118) to hold a two-stroke lead at 26-under. They were the only team to birdie three of the four par-3 holes in the Modified Alternate Shot format in round two.
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) December 10, 2022
Hoffman and Palmer started as hot as they finished, carding birdies on the first two holes to increase their lead. Though other duos tied the lead at points throughout the round, no one was ever able to knock Hoffman and Palmer from the top, and as they came down the stretch, they managed to make birdies and distance themselves from the pack.
They birdied three straight from Nos. 12-14. Then back-to-back on Nos. 16-17. A day after a 56, they were one of four teams (out of 12) to shoot double-digits under par on Saturday.
Their two-round total of 118 is a new record at the QBE Shootout.
“This is a format you could have shot yourself in the foot for sure if you didn’t go out and put a decent round up,” Palmer said. “To shoot 10 under, there was 12 and 11 I believe, I was watching the leaderboard a little bit when I saw them and they played some exceptional golf. We played solid all day, we didn’t do anything spectacular.
“He teed off a lot of great tee balls, my iron play was on point today and he was able to make some putts. And when I needed to, I made a few, so the tag teaming went well today. It was nice to get that round in in this format.”
The closest group chasing is Tom Hoge and Sahith Theegala, which shot 12-under 60 for the second straight day. From holes Nos. 11-17 on the back nine, they were 7 under, punctuated with an eagle on the par-5 17th.
“Today, we just kind of started off hot and never really looked back,” Theegala said. “I was just saying walking off the green it just felt really stress free today.”
Theegala and Hoge made birdie on their first three holes and five of the first six. They cooled off in the middle of the round, but then again rekindled the flame during the stretch on the back nine. They’ll be in the final group on Sunday, looking to become the second pair of first-timers to win.
“I think more than anything, in best ball both of us just need to kind of be in the hole with chances on every hole,” Hoge said. “If we can both play well, it will help it out. Ultimately, you’ve got to make a lot of birdies to catch these guys, they’re playing well.”