Spaun hopes putter swing turns into U.S. Open defense

J.J. Spaun enters the weekend of the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial with momentum—hot putting and a spot near the top—three weeks before he tries to defend his first U.S. Open title. After a 2-under 68 Friday left him at 8 under and two shots behind Jord

FORT WORTH, Texas — J.J. Spaun walked the course with his mind split in two: one part on the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial, the other on the U.S. Open three weeks away.

Friday’s round looked like the kind of day he’s been searching for. After surging with four birdies on his front nine. he ran into a late wobble with a couple of late bogeys. The result was a 2-under 68. moving him to 8 under for the tournament and leaving him two shots behind Englishman Jordan Smith. one back of Hideki Matsuyama. and three strokes behind a group bunched together after 36 holes.

Spaun’s belief is simple: if his putting is finally aligning, his defense at the first major of his career can start to feel real.

Smith. a 33-year-old PGA Tour rookie who qualified through the DP World Tour. took the lead by himself with a closing stretch built on confident strokes. He rolled in a 31-foot birdie putt at the par-3 16th. saved par from a bunker on the 17th. and missed a 9-footer for birdie on 18 before finishing at 10 under after a second consecutive 65.

“It’s going to be a new experience for us out here leading for the first time,” Smith said. “Not going to force anything, not going to rush anything, just going to see what happens and enjoy it.”

Matsuyama—who won the 2021 Masters and has 10 other tour victories—and Michael Thorbjornsen both posted matching 65s. They were at 9 under along with Ryan Gerard, who shot 67, and Brian Harman, who followed up a 66 with another strong position at 9 under.

Spaun’s charge carried him alongside several others after Friday’s scoring: Akshay Bhatia (65), Russell Henley (66), Brice Garnett (66), and Alex Smalley (67).

The day also featured a rare moment that kept popping up around Colonial. A.J. Ewart recorded the second hole-in-one in two days at the 195-yard, par-3 16th. Brandt Snedeker had aced the hole in the opening round. Ewart then followed an opening 70 with a career-best 63. the low round of the day. landing at 7 under with Michael Brennan (66) and Mackenzie Hughes (67).

Heat and course firmness became their own kind of pressure. Gary Woodland, the 2019 U.S. Open champion. was among 11 players at 6 under at Hogan’s Alley. where light winds and still-soft conditions helped produce 154 sub-par scores through two rounds—tying the previous high set in 2010. when Zach Johnson posted a 72-hole scoring record of 21-under 259.

Temperatures reached the mid-90s with a heat index approaching 100, and conditions were expected to stay that way through the weekend. There was almost no chance for rain.

Harman summed up what that means for players trying to attack. “It’s drying up just like it probably did a little bit yesterday afternoon,” he said. “The fairways will get firm and these fairways will get tougher to hit, and that’s how this place protects itself.”

Defending champion Ben Griffin shot a second consecutive 68 and was 4 under, paired with Justin Thomas, who was one stroke above the cut line.

For Spaun, the most personal storyline may be the one he’s been living with all season. After opening the year with promise—including being among six players tied for the lead after an opening 64—he missed the cut in six of his first 13 events. including the Masters and the PGA Championship. He said he made a change because he was losing confidence on the greens.

“I changed putters because I was losing confidence on the greens,” Spaun said.

On Friday, his play looked like the payoff. He kept the hot front nine going with a 15-foot par putt at 17 and remained without a bogey for the tournament before missing a pair of par putts outside 15 feet on the seventh and eighth holes.

“It’s nice to see that the putter switch was a good change,” Spaun said. “I found myself kind of resenting my putter at times when I’m out on the course. That’s been the only issue all year. My ball striking’s been pretty solid. The weeks that I putt just slightly better than average, I contend.”

Spaun’s wins have given him a blueprint for how he can trust his game when it matters. He has two victories on the PGA Tour, both at the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio, including last month.

He also pointed to the role scheduling and conditions can play when form is still shaking out. He said the 27 holes on Sunday in a rain-altered event might have contributed to a 74-75 at the Masters, and that he shot 70-76 while playing a third consecutive week at the PGA.

The rest of his plan is also built around making room for fresh legs before Shinnecock Hills. After playing the Memorial next week, Spaun will skip the Canadian Open before going to Shinnecock. He said a week off would help without turning into too much separation from competition.

“It will be nice to have a week off and then get to Shinnecock and kind of feel fresh, but not like I’ve taken too much time off,” he said. He also said he skipped Colonial’s neighboring event, The CJ Cup Byron Nelson, last week.

Smith, for his part, tied his own momentum to putting and to the basics of ball-striking. He made 181 feet of putts, including a 40-footer from the fringe on the par-4 12th. His long putt at 16 came two holes after his only bogey of the tournament at the par-4 14th.

“The putter’s been hot the last two days, which is nice to see,” Smith said. “Swing still hasn’t felt 100%, but we’ve been hitting a lot of fairways and a lot of greens, which is key out here.”

At Colonial, the leaderboard is crowded, the heat is unforgiving, and the pressure isn’t only about this week. For Spaun, the numbers are starting to look like something that could carry all the way to the U.S. Open—if the putter keeps cooperating when it matters most.

J.J. Spaun Charles Schwab Challenge Colonial Jordan Smith Hideki Matsuyama Brian Harman U.S. Open Shinnecock Hills putting PGA Tour