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April 20, 2018
Second Round Notes
Weather: Mostly cloudy, with a high of 64. Wind SE 15-25 mph.
36-hole cut: 80 players at 1-over 145 from a field of 156 professionals.
Second-Round Leaderboard
| Zach Johnson | 70-65 | 135 (-9) |
|---|---|---|
| Ryan Moore | 68-67 | 135 (-9) |
| Andrew Landry | 69-67 | 136 (-8) |
| Grayson Murray | 67-69 | 136 (-8) |
Zach Johnson
Beginning on No. 10, 2008 and 2009 Valero Texas Open champion Zach Johnson reeled off four consecutive birdies (Nos. 12-15) en route to a 7-under 65. He made additional birdies at Nos. 17 and 1 and holed a greenside bunker shot for an eagle-2 at No. 5.
This marks the ninth time Johnson has held at least a share of a 36-hole lead on the PGA TOUR. The only one which resulted in victory was the 2004 AT&T Classic outside Atlanta.
Through 36 holes, Johnson has played the AT&T Oaks Course in even par on the front nine and 9-under on the inward nine.
Johnson won the 2008 and 2009 Valero Texas Open at LaCantera Golf Club in his first two starts in the event and is one of just four winners in tournament history, dating to 1922, to successfully defend his title (Bill Mehlhorn/1928-29, Arnold Palmer/1960-62, Justin Leonard/2000-01).
On his way to the 2009 victory, Johnson set the LaCantera Golf Club course record and tied his career low score with a 10-under 60.
In five starts at the Valero Texas Open since moving to TPC San Antonio, Johnson has missed two cuts (2010, 2017) and claimed one top-10 finish (T6/2014). He finished T20 and T29 in 2015 and 2016, respectively.
Johnson has collected 12 PGA TOUR victories. With the exception of the 2015 Open Championship, each win came in one of just four different states. With four, Texas has produced Johnson’s most wins (2008 and 2009 Valero Texas Open, 2010 and 2012 Fort Worth Invitational). He has won three times in Georgia, twice in Illinois and twice in Hawaii.
Today’s 65 marks just his third round in the 60s (18 rounds) at TPC San Antonio; 68/R2/2010/MC, 69/R1/2016/T29.
Now with 12 starts on the PGA TOUR this season, he has missed no cuts and finished inside the top 10 on one occasion (The RSM Classic/T8).
Ryan Moore
With scores of 68-67—135 (-9), Ryan Moore is the only player in the field to remain bogey free.
This marks the seventh occasion on which Moore has held a lead/co-lead after 36 holes. The only one which he converted into victory was the 2016 John Deere Classic.
Moore is making his fourth start in the Valero Texas Open this week; 2017/T18, 2012/T8, 2005/T53.
Through 36 holes, Moore has hit 25 of 28 fairways in regulation and 27 of 36 greens.
Moore, a five-time winner on the PGA TOUR, is in search of his first win since the 2016 John Deere Classic.
Second-Round Lead Notes
Since 2000, seven of the 18 second-round leaders/co-leaders of the Valero Texas Open have gone on to win, most recently being Jimmy Walker in 2015.
This season, six of 23 second-round leaders/co-leaders have held on for the win, most recently being Patrick Reed at the Masters Tournament.
Andrew Landry
After a bogey at his first hole of the day, No. 10, Andrew Landry (T3) made six birdies to post a 67 and get to 8-under 136.
Landry made his way onto the PGA TOUR this season by virtue of his fourth-place finish on the 2017 Web.com Tour priority list.
Landry has claimed three top-10 finishes this season on the PGA TOUR, each of which came in his first seven starts (T7/Safeway Open, T4/The RSM Classic and P2/CareerBuilder Challenge). He lost on the fourth extra hole of sudden death at the CareerBuilder Challenge to Jon Rahm.
Landry was T2 after three rounds of the 2016 U.S. Open before carding an 8-over 78 in the final round to finish T15.
In his only other start at the Valero Texas Open, Landry finished T51 in 2016.
Grayson Murray
In his first start at the Valero Texas Open, Grayson Murray (T3) offset three bogeys with six birdies to post a 69 and get to 8-under 136 with Andrew Landry.
Murray, winner of the 2017 Barbasol Championship in his rookie year on the PGA TOUR, is making his 14th start of the 2017-18 season. He finished inside the top-10 at the Safeway Open (T9) and AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am (T8).
This week’s Valero Texas Open marks Murray’s fourth start in a PGA TOUR event in the state of Texas: 2017 Houston Open (T55), 2017 AT&T Byron Nelson (T27) and 2018 Houston Open (T14).
Miscellaneous Notes
In the field off the alternate list when Alex Cejka withdrew early in the week, Ben Crane (T5) birdied five of his first eight holes en route to a 6-under 66 and get to 6-under 138. In relation to par, the 66 is Crane’s lowest score of the season (35 rounds).
Joaquin Niemann, the former World No. 1 amateur who is making his professional debut this week, made the cut and is T25 following scores of 72-70—142 (-2).
2015 Valero Texas Open champion and nearby Boerne resident Jimmy Walker (T13) sits at 4-under 140 through 36 holes. He is making his 13th start in the Valero Texas Open this week, and 11th straight. In addition to his 2015 win, he finished inside the top 10 in 2010 (T3).
Making his first start in the Valero Texas Open since 2011, and third overall, 2010 champion Adam Scott posted scores of 75-73—148 (+4) to miss the cut. Scott made three consecutive birdies on two occasions, but took a triple bogey at the par-4 first hole and a double bogey at the par-4 10th.
Past Valero Texas Open champions in the field: Zach Johnson (2008, 2009) -9/T1, Martin Laird (2013) -6/T5, Jimmy Walker (2015) -4/T13, Brendan Steele (2011) E/T48, Kevin Chappell (2017) E/T48, Charley Hoffman (2016) +1/T68, Adam Scott (2010) MC and Steven Bowditch (2014) MC.
Bogey-free rounds:
R1: Billy Horschel (68), Ryan Moore (68)
R2: Chris Kirk (66), Ryan Moore (67), Nicholas Lindheim (67), Kevin Na (70), Chris Paisley (71), Chesson Hadley (71).
Scoring Averages at TPC San Antonio:
| Round | Front 9 | Back 9 | Total | Cumulative |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | 37.167 | 36.365 | 73.532 | -- |
| R2 | 36.213 | 35.839 | 72.052 | 72.794 |
Early Scoring Average: 72.03
Late Scoring Average: 72.08
The par-4 ninth hole played the most difficult in round two at 4.342. The par-5 14th played the easiest at 4.445.
ABOUT VALERO
Valero Energy Corporation, through its subsidiaries (collectively, Valero), is a multinational manufacturer and marketer of petroleum-based and low-carbon liquid transportation fuels and petrochemical products, and sells its products primarily in the United States (U.S.), Canada, the United Kingdom (U.K.), Ireland and Latin America. Valero owns 15 petroleum refineries located in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 3.2 million barrels per day. Valero is a joint venture member in Diamond Green Diesel Holdings LLC, which owns two renewable diesel plants located in the U.S. Gulf Coast region with a combined production capacity of approximately 1.2 billion gallons per year, and Valero owns 12 ethanol plants located in the U.S. Mid-Continent region with a combined production capacity of approximately 1.6 billion gallons per year. Valero manages its operations through its Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol segments. Please visit investorvalero.com for more information.
ABOUT VALERO IN THE COMMUNITY
Valero Energy Corporation, through its subsidiaries (collectively, Valero), and the Valero Energy Foundation are committed to improving the quality of life in communities where Valero has major operations. In 2023, Valero, its employees and the foundation collectively generated more than $77 million in charitable support through direct/in-kind donations, fundraising and volunteerism. Valero employees logged more than 127,000 volunteer hours in 2023 for hundreds of projects in their communities. Valero provides funding to a variety of nonprofit agencies for programs and services supporting education, basic needs, health care and civic initiatives. Through the overwhelming support of sponsors, the foundation’s signature programs, the Valero Texas Open and Benefit for Children, generated more than $23 million raised in 2023 for charities across the United States.
ABOUT THE VALERO TEXAS OPEN
The Valero Texas Open is the sixth-oldest professional tournament in golf worldwide, the third-oldest on the PGA TOUR and the longest held in the same city. In 2022, the tournament celebrated its 100th anniversary.
Its list of champions includes some of the greatest names in golf history: Walter Hagen, Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Sam Snead, Arnold Palmer, Ben Crenshaw, Hale Irwin, Lee Trevino, Nick Price, Justin Leonard, Zach Johnson, Adam Scott, Jimmy Walker, Jordan Spieth and 2019, 2023 champion Corey Conners to name a few.
Since Valero became title sponsor in 2002, the tournament has become a leader in charitable fundraising among PGA TOUR events. The Valero Texas Open, together with its Benefit for Children and Champions fore Charity initiatives, has contributed more than $232 million to hundreds of worthy charities since inception. Please visit www.ValeroTexasOpen.com for more information.
Media Contacts
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Valero Texas Open
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210.345.3839 office
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Valero Texas Open
Director, Media Relations
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