Scottie Scheffler shot a 9-under 61 on Friday to take a three-stroke lead into the weekend at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, the opening event of the FedExCup Playoffs.

The world No. 1 made 11 birdies and two bogeys in 100-degree heat at TPC Southwind, reaching 11-under 129 through 36 holes. Viktor Hovland and Sungjae Im share second place at 8-under, with Ludvig Åberg another stroke behind in fourth.

Scheffler’s 61 tied the tournament course record, most recently matched by Justin Rose during the third round in 2023. Four players had previously recorded that score at TPC Southwind.

It was also the day’s lowest round, by three strokes. Scheffler began with five consecutive birdies from the first hole and covered the outward nine in 30, moving clear at the top of the leaderboard.

Scheffler builds his lead with approach play and putting

Scheffler gained 3.479 strokes on the field with his approach play and 3.868 strokes on the greens, leading both categories during the second round. Through two days, he leads the field in strokes gained from tee to green at 6.642.

His 14 birdies are also the most in the tournament, one ahead of Im. The volume of scoring allowed Scheffler to absorb two bogeys and still join an unusual statistical group.

He became the ninth PGA Tour player in the ShotLink era, which began in 2003, to shoot 61 or lower while recording multiple bogeys or worse. Rose was the last to do it, shooting a final-round 60 at the 2022 RBC Canadian Open.

The performance gave Scheffler his 22nd career 36-hole lead or co-lead on the PGA Tour. He has converted nine of the previous 21 into victories.

Scheffler has previously led by at least three strokes after two rounds on three occasions and won each tournament. He led the 2022 Masters by five before winning by three, then converted a three-shot halfway advantage at the 2024 Memorial Tournament. At the 2025 CJ Cup Byron Nelson, his 6-stroke lead became an eight-shot victory.

TPC Southwind remains one of the few regular stops where Scheffler has extensive experience without a win. This is his seventh appearance, more starts without victory than he has made at any other PGA Tour course. His previous six visits produced three finishes of tied fourth or better, including a tie for third in 2025.

Hovland and Im lead the pursuit

Hovland moved into the final group after a bogey-free 64, his second-lowest score in 26 competitive rounds at TPC Southwind. His best remains the 63 he recorded in the second round 2024, when he eventually finished tied for second.

This is the third time Hovland has occupied second place or better after 36 holes this season. The previous occasion came at the Travelers Championship, which he went on to win.

Im opened with birdies on his first three holes and posted a second consecutive 66. His 132 total matched his best 36-hole score at this event, set in 2023, when he finished tied for sixth.

Åberg shot 65 to move into fourth at 7-under. He made seven birdies but dropped two shots at the par-3 11th. The round was his lowest in 10 competitive appearances at TPC Southwind.

Tommy Fleetwood, Brian Harman and Jordan Spieth are tied for fifth at 6-under. Fleetwood and Harman completed bogey-free rounds, while Spieth followed his opening 65 with a 69.

Spieth moves inside the projected top-50

Spieth entered the week 54th in the FedExCup standings and outside the qualification line for the BMW Championship. His position through two rounds projects him to climb to 44th.

Only the top-50 after the FedEx St. Jude Championship will advance to next week’s BMW Championship at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis. Those players will also secure places in every 2027 Signature Event, which carry $20 million purses. Five players moved from outside the top-50 into qualifying positions during last year’s tournament.

Through 36 holes, three players are projected to move inside the top-50 of the FedExCup standings this week:

Projected to move INSIDE the Top-50 following the FedEx St. Jude Championship
Projected	Player (current position)
3rd → 36th	Sungjae Im (T2)
54th → 44th	Jordan Spieth (T5)
57th → 49th	Sudarshan Yellamaraju (T9)
Projected to move OUTSIDE the Top-50 following the FedEx St. Jude Championship
Projected	Player (current position)
47th → 52nd	Michael Brennan (T54)
48th → 53rd	Matt McCarty (T65)
50th → 54th	Maverick McNealy (T27)

Scheffler arrived in Memphis with a 794-point advantage over Matt Fitzpatrick in the season standings. Fitzpatrick shot 67 on Friday and sits at 3-under.

The leader has finished inside the top-5 in 11 of his 17 PGA Tour starts this season, four more than Fitzpatrick, who has the next-highest total. Scheffler has also accumulated five runner-up finishes, tied for the most by any player in one season since 1983. Cameron Young in 2022 is the only other player during the past 20 years to finish second five times in a season.

Rory McIlroy, grouped with Scheffler for the opening two rounds, followed a 74 with an even-par 70. He is tied for 60th at 4-over, 15 strokes behind Scheffler entering the weekend.

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