Frys.com Open: Second-round notebook

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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- A total of 77 players made the 36-hole cut, which came at 1-under 139.

• England's Greg Owen, who finished No. 10 on the 2008 Nationwide Tour money list, holed a sand wedge from 104 yards on the par-4 15th for an eagle-2 en route to a 6-under 64. He holds the second-round lead with Rickie Fowler at 11 under. The 64 bests his previous PGA TOUR career best of 65.

• This marks just the first time Owen has held a 36-hole lead on the PGA TOUR. He is competing in his 114th event of his PGA TOUR career, dating back to 1999.

Related

Leaderboard: Rd. 2 Scores
Tee times: Round 3
Live Report: Round 2
Scorecard: Greg Owen
Scorecard: Rickie Fowler
Scorecard: Justin Leonard
Photos: Second-round action
Daily Wrap-up: Round 2

• Owen, competing in his 29th TOUR event of the season, posted his best finish of 2009 in July with a tie for ninth at the John Deere Classic. He tied for 47th at last week's Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

• Owen began the week at Grayhawk Golf Club at 116th on the 2009 PGA TOUR money list. His career-best finish on the PGA TOUR is a runner-up at the 2006 Bay Hill Invitational.

• Coming off a tie for seventh at last week's Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, 20-year-old stand-out Rickie Fowler matched Greg Owen's 6-under 64 to take a share of the second-round lead at 11 under. He played his second round bogey free.

• At the 329-yard, par-4 sixth, Fowler drove his tee shot to within 13 feet and drained the putt for an eagle-2.

• Fowler, competing in his second PGA TOUR event as a professional and fifth of the year at this week's Frys.com Open, was originally given a sponsor's exemption into the field this week. However, by virtue of his top-10 finish in Las Vegas last week, he became automatically exempt into this week's field.

• Should Fowler finish in the top 10 this week, he will earn a spot in next week's Viking Classic field. However, he will have a decision to make as he is currently scheduled to play in the first stage of the PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament.

• As an amateur in 2008, Rickie Fowler made two starts on the PGA TOUR. He missed the cut at the Verizon Heritage and tied for 60th at the U.S. Open.

• Nick O'Hern, who birdied eight of the nine holes on the back nine at Grayhawk Golf Club on Thursday en route to a one-stroke lead at 7 under, kept the momentum going in Round 2 with a 2-under 68, despite a double-bogey at the par-4 18th. He trails Fowler and Owen by two strokes at 9 under.

• Currently No. 102 on the money list, O'Hern is making his 26th start of the season, with 16 made cuts and a season-best tie for third at the Shell Houston Open. He missed the cut a year ago in his only previous start at the Frys.com Open.

• Justin Leonard, who was among the victorious American team at the Presidents Cup earlier this month, posted a 6-under 64 in Round 2 to trail Fowler and Owen by a stroke.

• So far this year, Leonard has posted five top-10s, the most recent being a tie for eighth at the British Open in July.

• Should Leonard emerge victorious, it would mark the third consecutive year with at least one win for the Texan. He won last year's St. Jude Classic presented by FedEx, and, prior to that, he won the Valero Texas Open in the 2007 Fall Series.

• Leonard had four 2s on his card on Friday, having birdied each of the par 3s, including the 16th hole.

• This week, the 211-yard, par-3 16th acts as the Kodak Challenge hole as part of the year-long competition. The 30-event race concludes in two weeks at the Children's Miracle Network Classic, with the winner taking home $1 million. Here's a look at the leaderboard after round two:

• Scottsdale, Ariz., resident Ryan Moore kept himself right in the mix with a bogey-free, 5-under 65 in Round 2 to get to 9 under, just two back of Owen and Fowler.

• Moore is in the midst of his best year on TOUR, highlighted by five top-10s, including a breakthrough victory. Moore entered the winner's circle for the first time at the Wyndham Championship. He tied for seventh at last week's Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, thanks largely to a second-round, 9-under 63.

• Six Scottsdale residents currently sit within four shots of Fowler and Owen's 11-under lead after the second day of the Frys.com Open. The list includes Moore, Bryce Molder, Tim Clark, Pat Perez, Tom Lehman and Matt Jones.

• The second-round leader/co-leader has gone on to win 16 of 42 stroke-play events this season, most recently Tiger Woods at the BMW Championship. The second-round leader/co-leader has failed to advance to the winner's circle in the first two playings of the Frys.com Open.

• The par-4 18th hole played the toughest on Friday, with a 4.275 average. The par-4 15th hole was the easiest at 3.649.