Memorial Tournament: Paul Casey In Charge After Two Rounds In Dublin

May 30, 2014; Dublin, OH, USA; Paul Casey hits his second shot on the 3nd hole during the second round of The Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Paul Casey came into the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance ranked 97th in the most recent official world golf ranking.

Now at 12-under and holding a three-shot lead over Bubba Watson, the Englishman is looking to regain the form that made him the seventh-ranked player in the world following his 2009 season (he was ranked third earlier that year).

Casey will be a father in September when his fiancee Pollyanna gives berth to a baby boy. With this news and now a lead after two rounds of play, things seem to be falling into place.

“I have a very good perspective on things,” Casey said. “I know where everything fits now certainly in my life.”

Casey shot a second consecutive 6-under-par 66 which included one eagle, six birdies and two bogeys. Casey hit nine of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens on the round.

“I was ecstatic with the way I played,” said Casey. “There were a couple of mistakes in there, but that’s Muirfield Village.”

Casey came into Round 2 trailing Rory McIlroy by two strokes, however McIlroy shot a 6-over 78 which included three consecutive double bogeys and a holed bunker shot to save par on the very next hole.

Among the pursuers is Bubba Watson who shot a 3-under 69 to trail by three strokes. Watson hit 11 of 14 fairways and hit 12 of 18 greens. Despite a driving average of 294.8 yards for the round, the lefty needed 30 putts, which was more than any of the other golfers in the top four and ties.

Watson’s back nine had two total pars with an eagle on 15, birdies on 11 and 13 and bogeys on 12, 14, 17 and 18. Watson’s round included included a shot off a cart path, a second on 15 from 245 yards that landed a foot and a half from the cup and two more that were not to his liking.

“The shot on 14 tee and that was the shot on 18 right there,” Watson said.

Chris Kirk is in solo third place after a round of 2 under that put him at 8 under and four back of Casey. Rounding out the top five are Hideki Matsuyama and Martin Flores each an additional stroke back.

The cut line was even par and a total of 76 players made the cut. Among those missing the cut are Justin Rose, Rickie Fowler, Russell Henley, Mike Weir, all of which who were 1 over, and Vijay Singh at 6 over.

Of note: McIlroy knee was bothersome during the first round and was sore while hitting on the range prior to Friday’s play. He has been on pain killers to help ease the injury. McIlroy hit four of 14 total fairways in the round.

Tee times start at 7:45 a.m. Saturday. Notables include Jason Day and Rory McIlroy at 11:25, Jordan Spieth and Dustin Johnson at 11:35 and the final group Paul Casey and Bubba Watson at 1:35 p.m.

He said it: “I think nobody’s immune in golf of playing good, playing average and playing bad. We’ve seen it from the best, from the guys down the middle of the pack and from the guys that are battling from the back. Yes, the last two years haven’t been my best but it’s part of the game. It’s part of life. It’s part of the career.” – Camilo Villegas who is tied for 10th place at 5 under par.

Chris Dazen contributed to this article.