Jordan Spieth pulls into tie for lead at Pebble Beach

By Art Spander, The SportsXchange
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USA team member Jordan Spieth hits off of the 6th tee during day 3 of the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota on October 2, 2016. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI
1 of 3 | USA team member Jordan Spieth hits off of the 6th tee during day 3 of the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Chaska, Minnesota on October 2, 2016. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. -- Jordan Spieth played 20 holes Friday on two different courses and moved into a tie for the lead after the unfinished second round of the annual AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Spieth ended his rain-suspended Thursday round on Monterey Peninsula Country Club's par-71 Shore course with two pars. Then on a day of light rain and sunshine fog which again halted play, Spieth followed with a 7-under 65 at par-72 Spyglass Hill.

That gave the 23-year-old Spieth a 36-hole score of 10-under-par 133. The performance was good enough to earn a share of first place with Derek Fathauer, who went 15 holes at Spyglass on Thursday and finished with a 2-under 70. He had one hole to go at Pebble when the alarm sounded around 4:30 p.m. Pacific time because of visibility problems.

Jason Day, No. 1 in the world rankings, was at 9-under through 12 holes Friday at Spyglass when officials made the decision for a second straight day to terminate play early.

He had recorded seven birdies without a bogey. After playing a full 18 Thursday at Monterey Peninsula and shooting a 69, Day said, "I'll just try to do what I did over at Spyglass."

He did much better than that.

Patrick Reed, the U.S. Ryder Cup hero last fall, was 7-under after 35 holes, including 17 Friday at Monterey. Also at 7-under after 31 holes - including 13 Friday at Pebble - is Korean Seung Yul-Noh.

Jon Rahm, the Spaniard who won the Farmers Insurance Open two weeks ago, benefited from six straight birdies, (two through seven) to record a 6-under 30 on the front at Pebble. Rahm eventually shot 67 after a 73 on Thursday.

If nothing else, he'll be better rested than those who have play more than 18 holes on Saturday.

Golfers, including Spieth and Fathauer, who didn't complete their Thursday rounds, had to be on course at 7:30 a.m. Friday. Another very early start is scheduled Saturday to finish the second round and go into the third, which is the big TV attraction with celebrities such as Bill Murray, Peyton Manning and Justin Timberlake.

The cut at the AT&T is done following the third round, or after everyone has a round at each of the three courses. The weather is more promising Saturday and Sunday, so organizers believe they can complete the tournament, infamous for storms, on schedule.

"I got in a nice rhythm," Spieth said. "The hole started to look very big."

NOTES: Tiger Woods had not planned to play the AT&T. His last appearance here was 2012. Woods doesn't like the weather, the six-hour rounds and the format -- three courses and rounds with an amateur partner. But the announcement Friday on Woods' website that he was withdrawing from the next two PGA Tour events was big news at Pebble. Many of the other top players in field expected to face Woods next week in the Genesis/LA Open at Riviera. ... Although Bill Belichick , coach of the Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, readily signed autographs after his round, he declined to do interviews. Belichick's pro partner for a fourth time in this tournament is Ricky Barnes of Stockton, Calif., the 2002 U.S. Amateur champ and son of former NFL player Bruce Barnes. "It's a total 180 from what everyone sees on camera," Ricky Barnes said. " ... You would have thought we were just four normal guys playing their weekend game."

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