Daniel Berger doesn’t have to answer questions about his back. The scorecard tells the story.
Berger, who is playing in what amounts to a home tourney, his Jupiter residence being a 15-minute drive away, held a three-shot advantage through the Honda Classic’s second round. This was after Friday’s 5-under 65.
Berger stated, “You get your mom’s cooking, and you get to go to bed in your own room.” It’s quite comfortable.
Kurt Kitayama, the first round leader, eagled 18th par-5 as darkness was closing in. He finished a round of 69 to tie for second with Chris Kirk (68), and tied for second at 7 over. Mark Hubbard (64) was another shot back at six under. Adam Svensson (65) was also a shot back at 65. Adam Svensson, who hit all 18 greens to his 65, finished the round with a par at 6 :41 p.m. – 22 minutes after sundown.
Hubbard stated, “This course was crazy.” There’s so much trouble. There are many things that can go wrong on any hole. You really shouldn’t get ahead of your self.
Berger’s 10-under 130 was tied for third in 36-hole scoring since the Honda moved in 2007 to PGA National. Aaron Wise was 12 over through two rounds, Rory McIlroy was 11 below at the midway point of 2014, and Brendon de Jonge was 10 under.
None of them won. McIlroy was defeated by Russell Henley in a playoff. Wise shot 75-73 to tie for 13th, and De Jonge shot 76-78 to freefall to tie for 63rd.
Honda seems to be the right choice for Berger. He’s had two top-five finishes in Honda in six previous starts. In 2015, he lost to Padraig Harrington in a Monday playoff.
Berger stated, “Every tournament that I play in, I want to win.” “But it would also be nice to win here having so much family and friends here this week.”
Berger shot a 5-birdie, zero bogey opening round on Thursday. Friday was almost as flawless, with six birdies, and one bogey. Berger’s only mishap was on the par-3 15, his sixth hole, when his tee ball hit a bunker. He missed a par putt of 15 feet.
Berger is the first to lead a 36-hole event on the PGA Tour since August 2016’s Travelers Championship. He has won four times on tour, the most recent being at Pebble Beach in 2021.
However, he was unable to play at Pebble this year due to back problems that arose in recent weeks. He also couldn’t defend his title. After testing his back at the Phoenix Open, he decided that he would like to play at PGA National. This is where he had played a lot of junior golf. He also wanted to get a week at the Honda.
So far, so good.
Berger stated that it took Berger longer than expected to feel better. “Six years ago, I felt like I could break my ankle. But 10 days later, I was fine.” Berger said. I am getting older and I feel different at 28. But that’s only part of the job.
Chase Seiffert (66), was tied for sixth at 5 Under. Seiffert, who was third at Honda last year, fell short of making this year’s field in a wild 16-1 playoff Tuesday. However, he got in anyway, as the first alternate after Tyler Duncan withdrew.
Seiffert did not play last week. He was also first alternate on the Korn Ferry Tour.
Seiffert stated, “It was really an relief, a weight off of my shoulders that I didn’t get through the playoff, but was able participate in the event.”
Brooks Koepka (72) was even par through the first round. Joaquin Niemann was last week’s Genesis winner. He was 4 under at one stage on Thursday. His 73 left him with 3 over.
The cut will be made at 2 over and 72 or 73 players will advance.
Andrew Kozan’s fate remains unknown.
Kozan was the only player to not finish the second round. Kozan finished the second round at 2 over. He was right on the cut line and was about 250 yards from green in the fairway of the par-5 18. Due to the darkness, he decided not to play his second shot. He will resume playing Saturday at 6:50 a.m.
DIVOTS: Gov. Ron DeSantis presented Barbara Nicklaus the Florida Medal of Freedom in recognition of her decades of charitable work. Patrick Reed shot 10 over his 10 last holes. He finished 9 over after shooting a score of 79. John Huh’s 65-hole round, which took him from 86th to the top 10, was fuelled by five consecutive birdies. This streak is the longest at the Honda. Fred Couples was the first to make six consecutive birdies in 1985 at Eagle Trace. Curtis Strange received $90,000. The Honda winner this year gets $1.44 Million. Louis Oosthuizen was the No. 1 player in the field. 13th in the world, he rallied for a 65 — 10 shot better than his first round — and reached even-par 140.
