NAPA, CA – Ben Griffin did his business on Friday, like he was at other PGA Tour stops, even with so many Ryder Cup teammates around him. He played bogey-free for the second day in a row at a 6-under 66, building a three-shot lead in the Procoll Championship.
The two “Cup” players were behind him. One of them is Ryder Cup rookie Russell Henry (68), and the other Jackson Koivan, a top-ranked amateur who led the Americans to a Walker Cup victory last week at Cypress Points 3-1.
Koivun hit a 30-inch from the Eagle’s three-iron on the par 5 on the 12th, then hit a tee shot on the 14th, retrieved a bogey, bounced off a birdie and rolled it up with a 66.
Henry lives in Columbus, Georgia. This is about 30 miles from Auburn, where Kovrun enters third grade, and we know each other well.
“I met Russell Henry on the range and told me I was going to catch him,” Kovrun said, “That was my purpose.”
They tied three behind a 130-under Griffin.
US Open Champion JJ Spaun, who also joins Bethpage Black, was well suited for the 68, five shots behind alongside Lanto Griffin (70).
Silverado has 10 players on the American team, with Captain Keegan Bradley checking in everything. The victory was to compete and hold so many American players sharply, unlike two years ago, when many went in a month without competing before the Ryder Cup.
“I don’t even say my idea is the Ryder Cup. I’ve been focusing quite a bit on this golf tournament,” Griffin said. “I definitely had a Ryder Cup presence, wandering around with the guys from the golf course, but when I get to the first tee I think I’m trying to play well here.”
That part is going well. Griffin handled three par 5s on the back nine and hit a beautiful tee shot on the left pin on a sudden par 3 second bunker.
He is one of four Ryder Cup rookies, along with Henry, Spawn and Cameron Young.
Scotty Schaeffler had some birdies than the opening round. When he didn’t hit it where he was aiming and settled on a Ho-Hum 68 with eight shots left, he had as many birdies as he didn’t hit it. Schaeffler hasn’t gotten any worse than his 8th place since March.
Henry played with Schaeffler and Span, holding him back to a 3-putt bogey from 45 feet on a par-4 third hole, moving up the board on a good scoring day until he couldn’t go back up and down from the left of the par-3 seventh green.
However, his putting was great and his time with his teammates got even better off the course.
“Being able to play on a team is a dream come true, and playing with two teammates this week was really cool during these first two days,” Henry said. “We definitely have a lot to think about, but we’re trying to make sure this is a well-prepared week.”
Henry and Scheffler joined 2-1 in the Presidential Cup and were grouped together in the practice of this tournament and weekday rounds.
Spaun didn’t feel badly sharp, but he said he was “scraping it down” to post a score.
“It wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible,” Spaun said. “I mean, I used a really good iron shot and made some putts outside 3 feet and called it a day.”
That’s not the case for Griffin.
About two hours after he finished, Griffin was the only person on the practice green on a gorgeous summer summer day in Napa.
“This week I’m literally trying to do the same thing as me,” Griffin said. “I’m trying to stay confident, stay motivated and hold my pedals down.”
All but one of Silverado’s Ryder Cup players have not faced 36 holes cuts since the British Open. Sam Burns and Patrick Cantray were perfect for the cut line when they were finished.