J. T.
Poston carded an 8-under-par 65 on Friday to seize a one-stroke lead over Ryan Gerard after the second round of the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village.
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Poston reached a 9-under 135 total, nine shots better than the field average, as gusty winds battered the course.
The leader credited a recent equipment change for his success in the challenging conditions.
He switched to a new golf ball model last week, designed to perform better in the wind.
“It’s supposed to help me a little bit in the wind,” Poston said.
“We felt like today was going to be a good test of that and it obviously performed really well.”
Poston also excelled on the greens, needing just 24 putts and gaining four strokes in putting statistics.
Ryan Gerard sits in second place after a 69, finishing three birdies before the strongest gusts arrived.
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“I was spraying sunscreen and all of a sudden it started going all over the place,” Gerard said.
“And my caddie was like, ‘Oh, I guess it’s windy now.’”
Gerard recovered from two hazards on the back nine, hitting both greens in regulation from over 240 yards.
“Mentally and physically this place is a monster,” Gerard added. “It’s a test of patience.”
Tommy Fleetwood described the conditions as “pretty brutal.”
Justin Thomas, who made the cut on the line, called it “the hardest round of golf that I can remember, major, non-major, it was just insane.”
Scottie Scheffler rallied with three late birdies for a 72, leaving him 10 shots behind alongside Rory McIlroy, who shot 74.
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Sam Burns remained three shots back after a second consecutive 69.
