Thorbjorn Olesen leads the 3M Open
At the TPC Twin Cities, Thorbjorn Olesen overcame difficulties to take the lead, with a one-stroke advantage over Jake Knapp, heading into the weekend at the 3M Open. After an opening round of 62, nine-under par, on Thursday, Olesen carded a 66 on Friday. The 35-year-old Dane birdied the final hole, the ninth, a par 4, after emerging from the high grass. He also recovered from a double bogey on the 15th hole, a par 4, with consecutive birdies, in his quest for his first PGA Tour victory.Olesen accumulated a total of 128 strokes, 14 under par. Knapp, for his part, completed the day with 65 strokes. Pierceson Coody (65) was one stroke away, followed by Sam Stevens (68). Stevens closed with a bogey on the 9th hole. Takumi Kanaya (64), Chris Kirk (67) and Matti Schmid (68) were at 11 under par. With two weeks left in the regular season, Knapp (55th in the FedEx Cup standings), Schmid (68th), and Kirk (77th) are still in the running for the FedEx Cup Playoffs. The top 70 advance to the first playoff event. Olesen, with nine international victories, is a regular on the European circuit. Last week he didn’t make the cut at the British Open in Northern Ireland.I think on both days, my iron game has been very, very good. I hit a lot of shots very close to the hole and gave myself a lot of good opportunities. Today, there were like two or three bad drives that cost me, but I still felt pretty good over the ball.
Thorbjorn Olesen
Knapp, for his part, has not made any bogey in 36 holes for the first time in his career, starting with birdies on holes 10-12. He seeks his first PGA Tour victory of the season, after achieving the first of his career at the 2024 Mexico Open.I take each week as it comes. Each week is an opportunity to try to recover and do something special.
Thorbjorn Olesen
Knapp shot the lowest score on the PGA Tour this year, with a 59 at the Cognizant Classic in February. Adam Svensson came close to matching Knapp with a course record of 60 strokes, 11 under par, on Thursday, but fell back 29 places on Friday with 75 strokes. Byeong Hun An, 67th in the FedEx Cup standings, and Haotong Li, who was part of the last pairing with winner Scottie Scheffler at the British Open and tied for fourth, did not make the cut.I feel like it’s been… almost error-free for the most part. I haven’t really had to try too hard.
Jake Knapp
