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Brian Harman blitzed the field Friday at TPC San Antonio with his second straight round of 6-under 66 to command a sizable four-stroke lead over Keith Mitchell at the halfway point of the 2025 Texas Open. Harman's 12-under total ties the 36-hole tournament scoring record, which was previously set by Si Woo Kim.
"It's been pretty good, controlling my distances nicely," Harman said. "It's one of the demands this place makes on you you have to really have control of your ball. Ball lands on the green, they're a lot firmer than they seem, and if you're playing from out of position, it's really tough."
After playing his first seven holes in 1 under, Harman caught fire right as he was about to make the turn. Taking advantage of the accessible par-4 17th and par-5 18th, the left hander kept his foot on the gas pedal through the home stretch. Additional circles arrived on his scorecard across the next two holes before two more came to his aid on Nos. 5 and 7.
At one point, Harman held a six-stroke lead, and it appeared as if he could do no wrong. A wayward drive on his last may sour his dinner ever so slightly, but the edge remains four for the man who entered this week without a top-10 finish on the year.
"It has been a slow start, a little uncharacteristic," Harman said of his season. "I've been pretty frustrated; I haven't really been able to put my finger on what it is that's kind of holding me back. So, nice to take a couple weeks off and regroup and at least have a couple nice days so far."
While Harman had his way with TPC San Antonio, Jordan Spieth jumped across the par threshold throughout his day and settled for a 1-over 73. Getting as deep as 6 under for the tournament thanks to a pair of early birdies, the 2021 tournament winner seized his momentum on the second nine with a double bogey on his 10th hole, the par-4 1st.
Some poor chips coming in saw Spieth drop a couple more, hindering him from taking advantage of scoring chances. Still, he hovers around the top 20 at 4 under alongside his good friend, Rickie Fowler, and just behind his fellow Americans Patrick Cantlay and Daniel Berge,r who are two better at 6 under.
"I didn't play very well today by any means," Spieth said. "I had less control of the ball and was hanging in there for a little while on my front nine. Then ... I lost four shots chipping from this rough around the greens on the last nine holes.
"Each one, it's like, well, it could jump or it could -- felt like I was just picking heads or tails and just losing each one. Chips felt fine and just came out completely different than what I thought. Sometimes that happens: The shorter the rough, the weirder the situation versus if it's thick you know exactly what you've got to do. So, that's really incredibly frustrating because it's like those are -- they're right there."
The leader
1. Brian Harman (-12): The 2023 Champion Golfer of the Year entered this week without a top-10 finish on his season, but it was not for a lack of quality work from tee to green. Harman has been striking the ball beautifully for most of the year while his typical strength (putting) has completely let him down. That has not been the case this week.
After gaining three strokes on the greens in Round 1, Harman continued to roll the rock with confidence in Round 2 and gained another two strokes on the field. He ranks second in the category for the week and when coupled with occupying the top spot from tee to green and on approach, his advantage makes all the sense in the world.
Other contenders
2. Keith Mitchell (-8)
T3. Sam Ryder, Matt Wallace, Ryo Hisatsune (-7)
T6. Patrick Cantlay, J.T. Poston, Daniel Berger, Carson Young, Emiliano Grillo, Andrew Novak, Steven Fisk (-6)
T11. Harry Hall, Ben James, Henrik Norlander, Denny McCarthy, Zach Johnson, Harry Higgs, John Pak, Quade Cummins (-5)
With one spot remaining in the Masters field for this week's winner (if not already qualified), no one may have seen this scenario in the cards. Ben James from the University of Virginia -- in the field via his win at the Valero Texas Collegiate--— is right in the thick of it at the halfway point thanks to rounds of 68-71.
The No. 3 ranked amateur -- behind Luke Clanton and Jackson Koivan -- says he is just happy to be here, but he now finds himself with a chance to win on the PGA Tour, accelerate his golf career and potentially secure a coveted invitation into the Masters.
"No one's the same. I'm just kind of focusing on day to day and my day-to-day work at home," James said. "I have a lot of good prep work with my coaches back at home, so it's the most important thing. It's obviously great to come out and play well for two days, but I've got two more days. All the work beforehand and all the rankings and stuff I'm not too concerned about, good golf will just take care of itself."
Stars sent packing early
The Texas Open served as a tune-up for some, but it is clear after two rounds of play that those who missed the cut need more than just a little maintenance. Former U.S. Open winner Matt Fitzpatrick and reigning champion Akshay Bhatia were early exits while the struggles of Tom Kim and Max Homa both continued.
Perhaps most surprising was that a pair of winners already this season, Hideki Matsuyama and Ludvig Åberg, will not be around for the weekend. Both players have now missed two cuts in a row entering Augusta National with some questions marks swirling around their games. Two months ago, that was far from the case for either of them.
Tony Finau also found himself on the wrong side of the cutline late no thanks to three straight bogeys, but an ace on the par-3 16th pushed his name well inside and into the weekend.
Notable names to miss cut:
- Ludvig Åberg (E)
- Akshay Bhatia (E)
- Hideki Matsuyama (+1)
- Sam Burns (+1)
- Si Woo Kim (+1)
- Max Homa (+3)
- Tom Kim (+4)
- Matt Fitzpatrick (+4)
WHEN HE NEEDED IT MOST‼️
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) April 4, 2025
Tony Finau makes an ACE on the 16th to get inside the projected cutline. pic.twitter.com/aImuCmaIf7
2025 Texas Open updated odds, picks
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook
- Brian Harman: 2-1
- Keith Mitchell: 15/2
- Patrick Cantlay: 11-1
- Daniel Berger: 16-1
- Sam Ryder: 22-1
- Matt Wallace: 22-1
- J.T. Poston: 22-1
Harman priced at 2-1 with a four-stroke lead seems fair enough, but the thought of sweating that number over the next 36 holes is not appealing. Instead, Poston at 22-1 and six strokes adrift is the preferred option. He was flawless on Friday with a 6-under 66 that saw him gain more than five strokes from tee to green. Poston hasn't been putting it well so far this week, but if he returns to his historical norm over the weekend, he can make some noise.
