The Genesis Invitational Round 2: Davis Thompson Leads as Scheffler and McIlroy Close In

Friday at Torrey Pines looked nothing like Thursday. The rain cleared, the sun came out, the greens stayed soft, and a leaderboard that had been a survival test turned into a heavyweight card.

Davis Thompson sits on top of it. Thompson shot a 6-under 66 to reach 8-under 136 and take a one-shot lead at the halfway point of The Genesis Invitational. Scottie Scheffler, the world No. 1, is alone in second at 7 under after a bogey-free 67. Denny McCarthy, the first-round leader, is third at 6 under, Rory McIlroy shot 67 to sit fourth at 5 under, and Ludvig Åberg (66) and Patrick Rodgers (71) are tied for fifth at 4 under.

Per the tournament, four of the top seven players in the world are sitting at the top of the board.

Thompson's Roller Coaster

Thompson's card was anything but tidy. He made only two pars on the back nine. He got up and down for par on 10, then chipped in for birdie on 11 and again on 12, and birdied the par-5 13th to grab the lead. Then he gave two right back with bogeys on 14 and 15.

The response mattered most. Thompson rolled in a 25-footer for birdie on 16 and finished by sticking a wedge to a foot on 18. Thompson called the back nine "kind of a rollercoaster," per the tournament's recap, and said that "birdieing 16 and 18 definitely helped out."

"We're halfway through, still a lot of golf left," Thompson said, per the AP. "Yeah, just trying to stay in my own lane."

Thompson won for the first time last year at the John Deere Classic. Now he gets a Saturday final group with the best player in the world.

Scheffler Scores Without His Best

Scheffler's 67 was the kind of round that makes the rest of the field nervous, because it was not pretty. He hit only five fairways. His tee shot on the par-3 11th went so far left that it bounced twice on a cart path, and he saved par anyway by chipping in from 50 yards off the neighboring 12th tee. He did not make a bogey all day.

The highlight came on the par-5 sixth, where Scheffler holed a bunker shot for eagle, the PGA TOUR's Shot of the Day. He added three more birdies.

Scheffler said he loved being able to score on a day when the ball striking was not up to his usual standard. His start to the year was delayed by a freak hand injury, and he noted that "those short little touchy shots are always the ones that are the last to come back after a longer layover," per the AP. After the round he headed to the range to work on his driver.

Rory and Ludvig Arrive

McIlroy, fresh off his win at Pebble Beach, was the hottest player on the course early. He went 5 under through his first 10 holes before the driver started to wander. He scrambled for pars and closed with a 67, but the par 5s still bothered him.

"I hit a lot of really good shots. I played well for the most part. I scrambled well," McIlroy said, per the AP. "But I know going into the weekend I'm going to have to play the par 5s better."

Åberg's 66 matched Thompson for the low round of the week so far, and it came 10 shots better than Thursday's 74. The Swede shared the 36-hole lead on this same course at the Farmers three weeks ago before a stomach illness wrecked his weekend, and he later withdrew from Pebble Beach after one round with a stomach virus. Friday was a reminder of what a healthy Åberg looks like.

"I just really like fair golf courses that are tough," Åberg said, per the tournament. "It's just a good golf course. It's challenging but it's also very fair."

McCarthy Hangs Around

McCarthy did not repeat Thursday's heroics, but a 70 with a birdie on the last kept the putting specialist firmly in the mix at 6 under. He gets McIlroy as a weekend playing partner. Rodgers slipped to a 71 but is still only four back.

Nick Dunlap is alone in seventh at 3 under. Seamus Power, Akshay Bhatia, Wyndham Clark, Aaron Rai, Jake Knapp and Andrew Novak are tied for eighth at 2 under. Bhatia's 67 was another of the day's big moves after an opening 75.

The Cut Bites Big Names

This is a signature event with a cut to the top 50 and ties, and it took out some notable players. Sepp Straka, who won in the California desert and came into the week leading the FedExCup, is going home. So is Jordan Spieth, fresh off a tie for fourth at the WM Phoenix Open. Max Homa missed again and has not made a weekend in three events with a 36-hole cut this year. Sungjae Im missed at 5 over.

Through two rounds, the field had made 425 birdies or better, per the tournament, each one feeding Genesis' Birdies For Good wildfire relief fund.

The Weekend Setup

Saturday's final group is Thompson and Scheffler, a pairing that will test whether the 36-hole leader can hold his own next to the world No. 1. McIlroy and McCarthy are paired together. Åberg and Rodgers lurk four back.

On a course this long, with rough this thick, three or four shots can disappear in a couple of holes. Friday made it clear that the leaderboard has teeth.

Catch up on Thursday in our Round 1 recap. Full scores are on the official PGA TOUR leaderboard (opens in a new tab), and the TOUR's Round 2 recap (opens in a new tab) has more.

Sources: PGA TOUR (Round 2 recap and leaderboard), AP, The Genesis Invitational. More golf coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: PGA TOUR.