Knapp goes from a 59 to a 70 but still has the lead in the Cognizant Classic

Jake Knapp was 11 shots worse than his opening round at the Cognizant Classic and still stayed in front, curling in a 15-foot birdie putt on his final hole Friday for a 1-under 70 and a one-shot lead over Matthieu Pavon.

Knapp, who made 12 birdies Thursday for the 15th round of 59 or lower on the PGA Tour, went 10 holes without a birdie. He had a double bogey when his tee shot found the water. One of his better shots hit a sprinkler cap and bounced 40 yards away.

Knapp wasn’t sure what to expect. It was close to perfect one day and a struggle the next.

“I’ve never had to follow up a 59 at a tournament before. It’s all new to me,” Knapp said. “Yesterday, everything was just clicking ball-striking wise, distance control felt really good, was able to control flight and windows. All that was perfect.”

There was more wind at PGA National. Putts that found the center of the cup managed to burn the edge.

“A couple of wayward shots, but nothing too concerning,” he said.

One player had reason to celebrate, along with shedding a few tears. Florida State junior Luke Clanton easily made the cut with a 5-under 66 — he was just four shots behind — giving him enough points for the 21-year-old to get a PGA Tour card after the NCAA Championships at the end of May.

Clanton already has two runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour and a pair of other top 10s. He is used to the big stage, and he has another opportunity this weekend.

The same holds true for so many others.

Knapp was at 13-under 129. Pavon, the Frenchman who won at Torrey Pines last year, had a 64 and briefly had the lead until narrowly missing a birdie on his last hole to finish one behind.

Daniel Berger, who grew up near PGA National, went out in 31 to share the lead and didn’t make another birdie the rest of the way. He fell back with a bogey in which he gouged one shot out of the muck and weeds on No. 11 and did well to limit the damage.

Berger had a 68 and was at 11-under 131, along with Michael Kim (66), Doug Ghim (63) and Jesper Svensson (67), a rookie who earned his card through the European tour last year.

“I just kind of lost a little steam on the back nine,” Berger said. “I don’t know if I didn’t eat enough food and started to feel a little bit off there. But hit a bad 9-iron, plugged it in the hazard, and I actually got away with one just to make a bogey there.”

Former Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson showed enough game at age 49 to post a 66 and joined Rickie Fowler (68) and Taylor Montgomery at 132.

Jordan Spieth was right there with them, holing a 50-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole. But a day after he birdied all three holes of the “Bear Trap,” the par-3 17th had him for lunch.

Spieth pulled his tee shot into the hazard. His 25-foot par putt drifted 4 feet by the hole, and he missed the comeback to make triple bogey. A birdie at the 18th gave him a 70, but he was six shots behind going into the weekend.

Spieth added the Cognizant Classic to his schedule for the first time after the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill chose not to give a sponsor exemption to the three-time major champion, awarding them instead of Min Woo Lee, Mackenzie Hughes and Rafael Campos.

Knapp opened with a birdie after his round of 59 — he started on the par-5 10th hole — and then it went quiet. He made bogey from the bunker on the 16th. He found a bunker off the tee at the par-5 18th that kept him from reaching the green in two.

It looked to be a day when everything conspired against him on the par-5 third when his second shot was just right of the green, hit a sprinkler cap and wound up some 40 yards away near the ninth tee. He pitched nicely to 8 feet for birdie, and then birdied the next hole and was back on track until his tee shot found the water on the par-4 sixth.

“Obviously, today wasn’t as great,” he said. “I’ll go out and practice a little bit and make sure a few things are cleaned up. But for the most part, you can’t really overdo it on this course. You can’t overpower it or anything like that. Just got to take what it gives you.”

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