Georgia, Nov 18 (IANS): The latest Swedish sensation Ludvig Aberg had a bogey free 6-under 64 at the Seaside Course, a day after a 5-under 67 at the Plantation course at the RSM Classic to take the lead at 11-under 131.
Aberg played the host Seaside Course Friday and was at 11-under 131, one shot ahead of Eric Cole (66 at Seaside), Denny McCarthy (65 at Seaside) and Sam Ryder (67 at Plantation). Matt Kuchar, who had a 4-under 68 on the Plantation Course, was among those two behind.
The top Asian is Si Woo Kim, who is the best placed Asian at T-32 as is Carl Yuan.
A victory would move Aberg into the top 60 in the FedExCup Fall standings, send him to Maui to start the new season at Kapalua and get him into the first two $20 million Signature Events at Pebble Beach and Riviera (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Genesis Invitational). He also would get into the Masters.
In the final tournament of the PGA TOUR season, Aberg, who turned pro only in June, is trying to notch up win on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. He already won the Omega European Masters in Switzerland, a performance that helped Luke Donald decide to give him a spot on Europe’s winning Ryder Cup team in Rome.
He still has 36 holes on the wind-blown Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club, and a host of players right behind him, each facing various levels of pressure.
Aberg will have to work out a schedule as a joint member of the PGA TOUR and DP World Tour, though he will spend most of his time in America.
This PGA TOUR season began in September 2022, making it 15 months long. The TOUR is now switching back to a calendar-year schedule and the stakes are high for various players, as the top 125 in the FedExCup Fall secure full-status PGA TOUR cards for next year.
The cut was at 4-under 138.