There will be a need to wait until the third round finishes tomorrow, Saturday, when all players have completed the course rotation, to really know where everyone stands. However, Friday’s round confirmed that the performance with which Scottie Scheffler (-17) started the American Express, his first tournament of the year and almost in four months (he only played Tiger‘s event in Bahamas in December after the Ryder), was no coincidence.
The Number One in the world has shone again, this time at the Nicklaus Tournament Course, signing a card of 64 strokes, with eight birdies and no bogeys. The Texan has not made a single mistake in 36 holes and this Friday he improved some aspects of his game where he wasn’t as sharp in the first round. Especially his accuracy from the tee, with 10 out of 14 fairways, maintaining his solidity with the irons with nearly 90% of greens in regulation (16 out of 18).
Under normal conditions, no one would have been able to keep up with such a production of flawless birdies. But today, the figure of the very young Blades Brown (-17) emerged, a lad just 18 years old whose name is starting to make waves. At 16, he broke Bobby Jones‘ record as the youngest golfer to be a medallist in the stroke play phase of the US Amateur, a record that had stood for over a century. And after being Number One in the Junior Amateur Ranking (AJGA), he decided to turn professional, skipping the college stage.
12-under thru 15 for Blades Brown! 🤯
@TheAmexGolf | #59Watch pic.twitter.com/AvGkCUS9yE— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 23, 2026
This week he is competing with a sponsor’s invitation and to the round of 67 with which he started the tournament, he added a tremendous 60 today to become co-leader. Brown swept through the Nicklaus Tournament Course with a card of 12 under par, missing several chances to achieve a 59… or even less. His eight under in his first seven holes of the day was a statement of intent. An emerging talent seeking the ‘big break’ of winning and securing playing rights on the PGA Tour.
After Blade and Scottie, one stroke behind, is South Korean Si Woo Kim (-16), who had to tackle the Pete Dye Stadium Course today, from which he extracted a magnificent 65. His compatriot S.H. Kim (-15), with 66 strokes at the Nicklaus, and American Matt McCarty (-15), with 66 on the same course, share fourth place. Ahead of a list of names among which the presence of Rickie Fowler (-14) stands out, trying to return to what he once was.
Nico Echavarria (-14), Eric Cole (-14), Wyndham Clark (-14), Jacob Bridgeman (-14) or even Russell Henley (-13), Patrick Cantlay (-13), Ben Griffin (-13), Nick Taylor (-13) and company are well positioned at the top of the leaderboard. But it’s worth not ruling anyone out because in this tournament, very low rounds can be achieved: “With the courses in such good condition and with this weather, it’s normal to see very low scores with the talent present on the tour today,” acknowledged Scheffler.
A year ago, it was necessary to reach 25 under par to win the tournament, with Sepp Straka as the champion. In 2024, Nick Dunlap signed a tremendous -29 to take the title, the lowest score since the event has been called American Express. And Jon Rahm‘s victory in 2023 came after closing the four rounds with 27 under. At this year’s birdie pace and with the good playing conditions, it wouldn’t be surprising if to lift the trophy, one has to reach 30 under par on Sunday…
