Bryson DeChambeau chips onto the first green Friday during the second round of the BMW Championship in Owings Mills, Md. DeChambeau shot a 12-under 60 and was at 16 under through two rounds. Nick Wass/Associated Press
OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Big, wide and soft Caves Valley didn’t stand a chance against Bryson DeChambeau on Friday in the BMW Championship. Only the record book did.
DeChambeau overpowered the vulnerable course, and when his 8-iron to the par-5 16th rolled off a bank on the back of the green down to 2 feet for eagle, he needed two birdies on the final two holes to tie the PGA Tour record of 58.
He missed from 15 feet on the 17th. Then he missed a 6-foot putt on the 18th hole and lost his bid at the 13th sub-60 round in PGA Tour history.
DeChambeau had to settle for a career-best 60 and a two-round total of 16-under 128, giving him a one-shot lead over Patrick Cantlay when thunderstorms caused the second round to be delayed.
Jon Rahm, the world’s No. 1 player, also got to 15 under after play resumed and faced a 15-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole when the round was halted by darkness.
“A lot of putts went in. A lot of things went right,” DeChambeau said to broadcast outlets. “I played my butt off and never thought too much about anything until the last few holes, and I striped a 9-iron on 17, striped a drive, striped a wedge on 18.
“And just wasn’t able to clutch those putts up.”
It was the second straight week during the PGA Tour postseason that a player had a putt to break 60 on the final hole. Cameron Smith missed from 12 feet at Liberty National in the third round last week. DeChambeau had an even better look than that.
His wedge landed some 25 feet beyond the flag, and the spin caused it to zip back toward the hole, 6 feet below the cup. The putt was wide left all the way. DeChambeau snapped his fingers, tapped in for par and then returned to the spot for a practice stroke, trying to figure out what went wrong.
Little else did.
The second round will be completed Saturday morning, and players will be grouped in threesomes going off both sides for the third round.
Cantlay, who had one of the great putting rounds of his career Thursday, was equally strong in a round of 63 that was largely overlooked. He played in the group behind DeChambeau and played a classic style of golf that resulted in 10 birdies until his lone bogey from a tough lie in the collar of rough around the par-3 17th green.
DeChambeau stuck to his practice of not speaking to the press, only the PGA Tour broadcast partners. That presumably stems from three weeks ago when he said he wasn’t vaccinated, saying, “I’m young enough. I’d rather give it to the people who need it.”
It hasn’t been the smoothest year for DeChambeau.
He had to miss the Olympics because of a positive COVID-19 test, and that followed a petty war of words with Brooks Koepka played out largely over social media. DeChambeau has heard “Brooksy” from so many hecklers that he has asked local security to remove fans.
There weren’t so much heckles on a blistering hot Friday, just raw amazement at his powerful swing and the birdies – and two eagles – it created. He had eagle putts on all four par 5s. His average distance to the hole on the par 4s was roughly 109 yards.
Only once did he not hit wedge on a par 4. That was on the 480-yard 15th hole. He had a 178 yards into a light breeze and hit a 9-iron.
“When he’s driving it that straight, it’s got to be what it was like in the early 2000s with Tiger just hitting it the furthest and the straightest,” said Jordan Spieth, who played in DeChambeau’s group. “It’s a little easier from there, but you’ve still got to get it in the hole.”
CHAMPIONS TOUR: Bernhard Langer shot his age on his 64th birthday for a share of the lead with Marco Dawson in the suspended first round of The Ally Challenge at Grand Blanc, Michigan.
“I was texting with my family this morning because of the rain delay and I said, ‘My goal is to shoot my age today and give myself a birthday present.′ Just shows you the strengths of the mind if you put something in your mind and a goal and sometimes you can achieve it. It’s the first time I shot my age. I’ve tried for two years.”
Langer had nine birdies and a bogey at Warwick Hills, playing the back nine in 6-under 30 in the round that started about five hours late because of the rain.
Dawson eagled the par-5 16th with a 60-yard shot and had six birdies for his 8-under 64.
Defending champion Jim Furyk was a stroke back with Joe Durant and K.J. Choi. Choi still had one hole left when the round was suspended because of darkness.
EUROPEAN TOUR: Dean Burmester shot a 5-under 65 to take a one-stroke lead after the second round of the European Masters in the Swiss Alps.
The South African made a superb up-and-down at the 17th to keep his card bogey-free. He is 11-under overall, a shot ahead of England’s Andy Sullivan (66) and Belgium’s Thomas Detry (65).
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