With 9 More Birdies, Collin Morikawa Closes Gap on Scottie Scheffler

The Cal grad is alone in second place after two rounds at the Tour Championship, now just four strokes back of the world's top-rankted player

Stormy weather challenges a golfer on Friday. / Photo courtesy of PGA Tour

Collin Morikawa assembled a sizzling 8-under round of 63 on Friday, ignoring a 95-minute rain delay to birdie the final two holes and grab sole possession of second place at the season-ending Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.

The 27-year-old Cal grad made nine birdies the day after he carded seven on Thursday and takes a score of minus-17 — including his four starting strokes — into the weekend.

Morikawa trails world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler by four strokes.

Morikawa’s 63 is the best round shot by any of the 30 golfers over the first two rounds in the final leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs. Sunday’s winner will take home staggering first-place check for $25 million.

Eight golfers were left on the course at 5:15 p.m. ET when play was halted due to “dangerous weather” that knocked out power for thousands in the Atlanta area.

Play resumed at 6:50 pm. and the leaders showed no ill effects of the stoppage.

Scheffler birdied Nos. 16 and 18 after the weather break to complete the first two days at minus-21. That includes his 10 starting strokes, based on being the leader in the FedEx Cup points standings. On the course, Scheffler has shot 11 under through 36 holes.

But his lead, which was seven strokes over Morikawa and Xander Schauffele after the first round, is now just four strokes. Morikawa is 13 under on the course and his four starting strokes send him into the third round at minus-17, one stroke better than Schauffele.

Schauffele also birdied No. 18 to close out a round of 64 that included seven birdies and no bogeys.

The top three on the leaderboard have accumulated 39 birdies and just seven bogeys through 36 holes.

At the 2023 Tour Championship, Morikawa shot 15 under (without his starting strokes) through 36 holes before closing with rounds of 73 and 72 to finish at minus-11 and in a tie for sixth.

Sahith Theegala, Wyndham Clark and Adam Scott are tied for fourth at minus-12, nine stroke back of Scheffler. 

One-time Cal student Byeong Hun An, a 32-year-old from South Korea, shot an even-par 71 and is tied for 25th place at minus-4. An had a two-stroke head start on Thursday morning.