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Halfway Hut at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship: Patrick Rodgers eyes first win

A round-up of the best stats, quotes and social after 36 holes at Port Royal Golf Course where Taylor Pendrith has a one-shot lead.

"This was the hardest wind I've ever played in," said pre-tournament favourite Matt Fizpatrick after finishing his opening round on Thursday.

The Englishman had needed all his skills to shoot an even-par 71 in wild morning conditions.
On day two, Patrick Rodgers walked into the interview area after shooting a 7-under-par 64 and, as you might expect, had a very different take.
"I've never seen Bermuda this calm, at least here at Port Royal," said the Californian.
Rodgers knew he'd got a break. "I tried not to talk to anyone who played in the morning yesterday," he said rather sheepishly. "Fortunate to be on the good side of it hopefully this week."

But the main hope for the man who won 11 times at Stanford (tying the record of a certain Tiger Woods) is to finally get that first PGA Tour win.

For years, Rodgers has been tipped for big things but that elusive victory hasn't yet arrived for the 29-year-old.

This looks a golden chance and hitting 30 greens in regulation out of 36 (rank: 1) suggests he's definitely worth an each-way bet at 11/2 (1/4 1-2-3-4) with Planet Sport.
For most of round two, the leaderboard was packed with players who had been drawn late/early.
But then Taylor Pendrith came along late in the day and fired a stunning 61 to burst through the field and take a one-stroke lead.
Taylor leads at 11-under from Rodgers at -10, Vincent Whalley at -9 and Danny Lee and David Skinns at -8.

As for the bigger names, Major winners Patrick Reed and Graeme McDowell lurk at -5 while pre-tournament favourites Fitzpatrick and Christiaan Bezuidenhout are eight off the lead on -3.

The weather forecast for the weekend? Saturday looks reasonable with winds of around 10-15mph but it could really blow hard on Sunday and there's a chance of t-storms too.
Here are the best stats, quotes and social from Port Royal Golf Course after 36 holes.

Click here for the leaderboard

Stats and facts

This is Pendrith's first career lead/co-lead after any round on the PGA Tour.
Pendrith's career-low 10-under 61 is the lowest ever score at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
Rodgers is seeking a first PGA Tour victory in his 194th start. He's had three runner-up finishes (most recent: 2018 The RSM Classic).
Defending champion Brian Gay made the cut on the number (even par) with scores of 75-67.
The draw produced a near three-shot difference. Early/Late = 143.42, Late/Early = 140.51.

Quotes

Taylor Pendrith (-11, 61)

"It was two different days, for sure. You know, yesterday was some of the worst weather I've ever played in and just almost like surviving out there. Didn't really matter how you hit it, you just have to hit shots.
"Today was a completely different story and could actually enjoy the views of Bermuda, so it was great. I think I made a lot of nice putts today and I drove it really well. I put myself in some good positions on the greens to make some birdies and the putter was hot."

Patrick Rodgers (-10, 64)

"I felt like it was a round where we needed to take advantage of it and I just did a great job of staying patient and giving myself a ton of opportunities.
"I didn't feel like I was overly aggressive at any point today and I just kind of plodded along. I think I hit 17 greens, so I just kept giving myself chance after chance and it added up to a great day."

Vincent Whaley (-9, 67)

"It was definitely playing quite a bit easier compared to yesterday, so it was more scorable and I just kind of played the easy holes well, I think.
"I think I've just putted well the last two days and when I had wedge shots, I hit them pretty close and gave myself good looks."

Danny Lee (-8, 67)

"Yesterday, it was hard to walk on some of the holes. It was definitely a lot easier today."
"I haven't seen the weekend in a while, so I was just trying to make the cut and all of a sudden after that hole-out on No. 5, everything just went smoothly."

David Skinns (-8, 66)

"There's been a lot of knockdown shots these first two days, less so today. Wind was down a little, but some of those holes are still playing hard.
"We'll see what the weekend brings weather-wise. I think it's going to be windier again, so yeah, I think it's going to be a lot more punch shots, which I'm okay with."

Patrick Reed (-5, 69)

"Played a lot harder for me today. I mean, today was gettable. I felt like the pins were a little bit more tucked in a little bit kind of more subtle areas today compared to yesterday, but there wasn't that much wind out there. It was very gettable.

"As long as you're playing the ball in the fairway, hitting some quality iron shots, you could shoot a low number out there. Unfortunately, I didn't capitalize where I needed to and really just a couple tee shots here or there that put me in bad spots where I had to scramble rather than being able to attack and make birdies."

Social

Taylor tears it up, Rodgers chips in, Hadwin in a spin and Morris realises a dream.
Pendrith pours them in
Rodgers on a roll
Adam gets some action
Morris makes it happen

READ MORE: Hideki Matsuyama: Can he follow up his career year with more Major success in 2022?

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