With another flawless round, Matti Schmid climbs to the top of the PGA Tour leaderboard at the World Wide Technology Championship.
Matti Schmid delivered a stellar second round at the PGA Tour‘s World Wide Technology Championship, taking the solo lead at El Cardonal Golf Course. Starting on the back nine, the 27-year-old German quickly found his rhythm with birdies on holes 10, 11, 14, 15, and 16, surrounded by steady pars. “I don’t think I chipped at all today,” Schmid said. “I must have hit a lot of greens. Life was pretty relaxed out there.”
The highlight came on the 18th hole. After two strong shots, Schmid faced a tricky nine-meter eagle putt with significant break. “It was a really tough putt,” he explained. “I had to play it up the ridge and let it roll down. I hit it a bit too hard, but luckily the bag was in the way — a bit of luck helped.” The ball dropped for eagle, capping a front-nine score of 29 as he turned to the front nine.
PGA Tour: Bogey-free 63 puts Schmid in command
Schmid kept his composure on the front nine, adding birdies on the par-5s at holes 1 and 5, and another on the 9th. His bogey-free 63 brought him to 17-under-par overall, putting him atop the leaderboard and boosting his chances of breaking into the FedExCup Top 60. “I actually drove it even better today than yesterday,” Schmid said. “The greens are big and undulating. You have to hit the right spots to get good birdie looks, and I felt like I did that really well today.”
Unusually calm conditions in Cabo San Lucas contributed to the low scoring. “It’s usually much windier here,” Schmid noted. “This year, you can get closer to the pins and make some putts.”
Chasing Signature Event qualification
Schmid entered the week ranked 70th in the FedExCup standings. His goal: crack the Top 60 to qualify for the first two Signature Events of the season — high-profile tournaments with elevated points and prestige. “We all know how important those events are,” he said. “You can earn a lot of points, and I want to compete against the best players on the best courses. That was my goal for the fall series — to grab one of those spots. You need a really good week — hopefully this is mine.” Despite feeling under the weather after returning from Japan, Schmid seems to be peaking at the right time. “I was a bit sick and drained, but now I feel fresh. The prep was short but good — I’m excited for the weekend.”
Other German players: Paul and Rosenmüller advance, Jäger misses cut