Séamus Power is safely through to the weekend at the PGA Tour’s Procore Championship at Silverado Resort in California after a three-under 69 which moved him into a tie for 24th.
The Waterford man started the day at one-under after an uncharacteristically poor day with his irons on Thursday which required fine short game play to bail him out most of the time, and even though he continued to lose strokes to the field on approach play on day two, it was a marked improvement.
Power birdied three of the four par-5s at Silverado, taking care of the fifth, 15th and 18th holes in a bogey-free round that gives him the opportunity to make strides up the leaderboard if he can get his iron play dialled in.
Coming into the week ranked 130th in the FedEx Cup and with only the top 100 players retaining full status for 2026 at the conclusion of the FedEx Fall series, these are crucial weeks for the two-time PGA Tour winner and though he’s 10 shots off the lead, he’s only five off fourth place.
After a first-round 64, Ben Griffin walked off with the lowest score of the 10 of the U.S. Ryder Cup team members in the 156-man field.
“Yeah, I’m the best player on the Ryder Cup. Yeah, it’s pretty cool,” the two-time PGA TOUR winner joked.
Fast forward to Friday, where Griffin posted a second-round 66 to take the solo lead after the morning wave. It’s not feeling like a joke anymore.
Griffin finished ninth in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings and was a captain’s pick for the 2025 event, slated for the end of September at Bethpage Black in Long Island, New York. He carried the momentum from his clutch closing 17-foot par putt on No. 18 Thursday into a bogey-free Friday where he hit 16 greens in regulation and was third in Strokes Gained: Approach to Green.
Starting on the back nine, he took advantage of the three par-5s and also drained a 21-foot putt on the par-3 17th to make the turn in 33. He hit approach shots to eight and four feet on two and six, respectively, and converted those for birdies.
His solid play in Napa is a continuation of the recent run of success he’s had. After missing back-to-back cuts at the John Deere Classic and The Open Championship, Griffin carded four straight top-12 finishes starting at the Wyndham Championship. This will be his first Ryder Cup in a season marked by firsts — his first TOUR win, at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, and his first time making the TOUR Championship.
“If anything, I’m a little bit more free compared to the (FedExCup) Playoffs just because there was a lot at stake for me,” Griffin said after his round on Friday. “Making the Ryder Cup team and everything … it’s not like on the golf course I felt anxious, but definitely in between rounds I was more anxious. I really have nothing to lose this week.”
Playing just two groups ahead of Griffin were Ryder Cup teammates Russell Henley and J.J. Spaun, who both backed up solid first rounds with second-round 68s. Henley and Spaun were second and third on the leaderboard at 11- and 9-under.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, also in the same group, improved upon an opening 70, which ended his streak of 21 consecutive rounds in the 60s, with a second-round 68. He’s six-under and eight shots back of Griffin.
Improvement seemed to be the overall trend for most of the U.S. Team. Playing in the gentler morning wave, the 10 players bettered their scores by a collective nine shots from round one.
Ryder Cup rookie and New York native Cameron Young made 101 feet of putts for a 67 to sit at five-under, while Collin Morikawa, who switched putters ahead of the tournament, carded a 68 to join him on that number.
Sam Burns and Patrick Cantlay, two other captain’s picks, both made the cut on the number at one-under, while Justin Thomas and Harris English were one shot better off.
“I’m pulling for all the (Ryder Cup) guys to play well,” said Griffin. “We want to build some momentum going into the Ryder Cup. I think the European guys are … all trying to play really well (at the BMW PGA at Wentworth) and show us what they’re capable of and we’re trying to show them what we’re capable of … I want them all to play well, but I want to play a little bit better.”
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