Ben Griffin leads by two at Sanderson Farms after ditching desk job to return to golf
Ben Griffin
Ben Griffin's decision to give professional golf a second try paid off as he grabbed the halfway lead at the PGA Tour's Sanderson Farms Championship courtesy of a nine-under-par 63.
Griffin had seven birdies and an eagle in a flawless round in Mississippi on Friday to lead by two strokes over the rest of the field.
It's a great return for a player who had decided to give up the game and return to a desk job in 2021 before returning to secure his tour card once again.
The highlight of his round on Friday was a spectacular 65-foot putt for eagle that found the center of the hole on 14.
That gave him a share of the lead on 12 under, before further birdies at 15 and 17 saw him finish two shots clear of nearest challengers Harrison Endycott, Luke List, Carl Yuan and Henrik Norlander.
"I maybe had, like, one kind of hiccup and was able to get up-and-down. Other than that, I kept the ball in front of me," said Griffin, who has never won on the PGA Tour. "It was just really solid."
Should he hold on for victory on Sunday, it would open up a lot of new opportunities for Griffin.
"You know, this is everyone's dream," he said. "It's rewarding to be in the position I'm in, and it really just comes down to self-belief to be able to get it done this weekend and just keep doing the same stuff. I've just got to keep staying strong."
Endycott, who finished in joint second, had a bit of misfortune on his final hole when his drive hit a power line. He was able to retake his drive but it was so far off course that it ended up on the neighboring fairway.
Luckily that made for an easy recovery back to the green and a closing birdie.
"It worked out," said the Australian. "Birdie at the last was meant to be."
