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Patrick Rodgers leads by two at John Deer Classic

By The Sports Xchange
Zach Johnson is near the leaderboard at the John Deere Classic. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI
Zach Johnson is near the leaderboard at the John Deere Classic. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

Patrick Rodgers fired a 7-under-par 64 on Friday to take a two-shot lead after the second round of the John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Ill.

Rodgers, who started on the back nine, had five birdies over a seven-hole stretch on the front nine before closing with his only bogey of the day to finish at 13-under 129.

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"It was nice to keep making birdies and keep the gas pedal down," Rodgers said. "It was tricky this afternoon with some breeze, but I know 13-under is not going to win the golf tournament, so I got to keep that same mindset for the next two rounds."

Bryson DeChambeau was second (131) after shooting a 65 that included eight birdies and two bogeys.

Zach Johnson, the 2012 John Deere Classic champion who hails from nearby Cedar Rapids, Iowa, had a 67 and is tied with Charles Howell III, the co-leader after the first round, at 10 under.

After opening with a 63, Howell shot 69 on Friday. He parred the first nine holes before picking up three birdies and a bogey.

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"We had a little bit of a breeze out there today," Howell said. "I can't believe the temperatures. Usually it's 100 degrees here in Moline in July. It was a great day. We just really didn't get much going until the very end there."

Kevin Tway (63), Chesson Hadley (64), Chad Campbell (68) and J.J. Henry (64) were at 9 under. Tway fired the low round of the day and had stretch of seven birdies in a row.

"I was kind of hoping it would never stop, but it did," Tway said. "I missed a short putt on 6. Yeah, just a lot of the long putts made and a lot of good shots being close. Some were easy and some were good putts."

First-round co-leader Ollie Schniederjans shot a 3-over 74 and was tied for 29th (137).

Bubba Watson and Davis Love III (139) were tied for 55th, and three-time John Deere Classic champion Steve Stricker (140) was tied for 70th.

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