World Wide Technology Championship Round 2: Ben James Stays Bogey-Free and Takes the Lead

Ben James swears the low numbers are a new development. By the rookie's own account, the Virginia product was a 2 or 3 under player in college who struggled to go deep. Two rounds into the World Wide Technology Championship, James is 15 under par, has not made a bogey at El Cardonal at Diamante, and owns a one-shot lead over Peter Malnati heading into the weekend in Los Cabos.

James followed Thursday's 65 with an 8-under 64 for a 36-hole total of 129. The second round started Friday, was halted by darkness with a handful of players still on the course, and was completed Saturday morning. The top of the board never budged: James at 15 under, Malnati at 14, Zac Blair third at 12. "It's weird, in college I was kind of someone that would shoot 2, 3 under every time out and would have trouble going low," James said, per the AP.

Five in a Row Around the Turn

James went off the back nine Friday, and the round caught fire right as it changed direction. Birdie at 17. Birdie at the par-5 18th, where a pitch settled about 18 feet away and the putt dropped. Then birdies at 1, 2 and 3, five straight that turned a nice day into a lead. On the par-3 9th, the final hole of the day, James got aggressive off the tee, stuffed it to 10 feet per Field Level Media, and rolled in an eighth birdie.

Per the PGA TOUR, that 64 was the 14th round of 65 or better for James in 13 starts since turning pro this summer, a stretch with four top-five finishes. "I'm doing everything right," James said, per the AP, before falling back on the one-shot-at-a-time mantra.

Malnati's Hard-Earned Friday

Malnati matched the 64 and spent much of the afternoon sharing the top spot. The card had an eagle and seven birdies, and it was clean until the last hole. At the par-3 9th, Malnati came up short of the green and slid a 12-foot par putt by, the lone bogey of the day and the difference between a tie and second place.

"I work really hard on my game and I haven't had tons to show for that lately," Malnati said, per the AP, adding that it was fun to play a Friday finish without thinking about the cut line at all.

Blair, who arrived No. 121 in the FedExCup Fall standings, shot 68 to hold third. Stephan Jaeger and Denny McCarthy each posted 65 to share fourth at 11 under.

A Logjam at 10 Under

Behind them sits a crowd. Ten players are tied for sixth at 10 under. Sudarshan Yellamaraju fired a 63, the low round of the day, to vault into the mix. Lucas Glover and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen each shot 64. Ryan Gerard, the highest-ranked player in the field, and 19-year-old Blades Brown added 68s, joined by Ben Kohles, Zach Bauchou, Austin Eckroat, Keith Mitchell and Kensei Hirata.

Glover's 64 might matter most. Glover came to Mexico at No. 111 in the standings, outside the top 100 who keep full status for 2027, and now has a weekend to climb.

First-round leader Chris Kirk cooled off after the opening 63. A 72 dropped Kirk into a tie for 16th at 9 under, six back, where Matthieu Pavon also landed after a 70.

The Cut: Who Survived, Who Didn't

The cut fell at 5 under, 139, and 75 players made it, including amateurs Jay Leng and Preston Stout. Stout returned Saturday morning with two holes left and held at 5 under, and Kristoffer Ventura did the same with one hole to finish. Nick Dunlap, a Thursday co-runner-up, stumbled to a 75 and made it right on the number.

The misses stung on the bubble. Taylor Pendrith, No. 102 coming in, opened with 68, shot 76 and finished at even par. Mackenzie Hughes (No. 101) missed at 1 over and A.J. Ewart (No. 104) at 4 over.

Karl Vilips opened with 66 and missed after a 74, one of five players knocked out at 4 under with Garrick Higgo, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Patrick Fishburn and Kevin Roy. Billy Horschel and Camilo Villegas finished at 2 under, Joel Dahmen and Sami Valimaki at 1 under, and Matt Kuchar went 68-77.

Tony Finau, No. 109 at the start of the week, made it at 6 under. Defending champion Ben Griffin shot 67 to reach 7 under and keep the title defense alive.

Been Here Before, Sort Of

James already has a 2027 card as the No. 1 player in the PGA TOUR University ranking, so this weekend is about more than status. Per the AP, a win would push James into the top 50 of the world ranking and earn a spot on the Championship Series in 2028. James also entered at No. 62 in the FedExCup Fall standings, and spots 51 to 60 at season's end come with entry into the first two signature events of 2027.

There is a cautionary note in the résumé. This is the second 36-hole lead of James' young pro career. The first came at the RBC Canadian Open, where a weekend 78 ended the dream. James also had a chance at the Biltmore Championship Asheville in September before Jacob Bridgeman closed it out.

Moving Day starts with a rookie who has not blinked in 36 holes, a veteran one back playing with freedom, and 14 players within five. On a course this generous, nobody inside that window is out of it. The full story is in the PGA TOUR's Round 2 recap (opens in a new tab), and the complete board is on the official leaderboard (opens in a new tab).

Sources: PGA TOUR, the Associated Press via NBC Sports and PGA TOUR, Field Level Media, Golf Today, Athlon Sports. More golf coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: PGA TOUR.