Twenty-year-old Aldrich Potgieter fired a 10-under-par 61 during Mexico Open second-round play Friday to open a four-shot advantage at VidantaWorld in Vallarta, Mexico.
According to the tour, Potgieter becomes the fourth-youngest player to shoot 61 or better in a PGA Tour event. Only Patrick Cantlay, Nick Dunlap and South Korea’s Tom Kim have him beat.
Potgieter, who won the prestigious Amateur Championship in the United Kingdom as a 17-year-old, is no stranger to precocious achievements. His card Friday consisted of 11 birdies and seven pars, pushing him to 16-under 126 for the week.
Germany’s Stephan Jaeger fired a 64 to move into a tie for second at 12 under with Brian Campbell (65). Aaron Rai of England, the highest-ranked player in the field (No. 29), also carded a 64 to stake out fourth place at 11 under.
Ben Griffin (65), Akshay Bhatia (66) and Isaiah Salinda (67) are tied at 10 under.
Three players shared the first-round lead, and none of them fared well Friday. Germany’s Jeremy Paul shot a 70 to move to 8 under for the tournament. Norway’s Kris Ventura (71) remained at 7 under and Englishman Harry Hall (72) dropped to 6 under.
Blades Brown, a 17-year-old who turned pro in December, made his first cut as a professional (5 under). Defending champion Jake Knapp struggled to a 72 Friday and made the cut on the number at 3 under.
Notable names to miss the cut include South Korea’s K.H. Lee (2 under), Charley Hoffman (1 under), Kurt Kitayama (1 under) and Ireland’s Padraig Harrington (1 over).
–Field Level Media
