Saturday 30 May 2015 22:43, UK
Jordan Spieth birdied the final three holes to post a second round 63 and move back in contention at the AT&T Byron Nelson.
The Masters champion, back playing in his home town and at the tournament where he made his PGA Tour debut as an amateur in 2010, began the day seven shots adrift of overnight leader Steven Bowditch and initially struggled to make any inroads in the leaderboard.
A gain at the shortened 14th was cancelled by a dropped shot at the next, with the world No 2 needing a birdie at the 18th to reach the turn under par.
Spieth then kicked on across the front nine, picking up shots at the second and third before finishing with a flourish, carding birdies at the seventh, eighth and ninth to join a group that includes Zac Blair, Zach Johnson and Scott Pinckney on six under.
“Most of my birdies were short putts today, so I’m going to work a little on the mid-range game to see if I can make a few from there,” Spieth told Sky Sports 4. “I didn’t give the crowds a whole lot to cheer for the first 27 holes, but made some noise on the last ten to get myself in to contention.”
The start of play was delayed by three hours as four and a half inches of overnight rain left large areas of the TPC Four Seasons course flooded, with tournament officials forced to turn the 406-yard 14th in to a 104-yard par-three with large parts of the fairway unplayable.
“It’s weird, I’ve never seen the course like this,” Spieth added. “A lot of times we get bad storms that blow in and then we get a few days of good weather, but not the consistent rain and overnight storms like we’ve had. “
Bowditch remains at the top of the leaderboard on nine-under 130 alongside American duo Jimmy Walker and Jon Curran, although 33 players were unable to complete their rounds before darkness.
Australian Bowditch birdied three of his last five holes for a one-under 68, while Walker, who is seeking his third victory of the season, carded a 66.
World No 213 Curran had six birdies in eight holes on his way to a six-under 63.
American Ryan Palmer (66) and Australian Cameron Percy (64) are both on eight under, with American Tony Finau, who still has two holes to play, among a group of five on seven under.
Watch the AT&T Byron Nelson live on Saturday from 6pm on Sky Sports 4 - your home of golf
