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A day after carding an 11-under 60, Pampling followed up with
a respectable 68 at TPC Summerlin, where Tiger Woods 20 years
ago clinched the first of his 79 PGA Tour victories.
Pampling posted a 14-under 128 halfway total, while American
Brooks Koepka (67) lipped out a five-foot par putt at the last
to slip out of a tie for the lead.
Aaron Wise, the U.S. collegiate champion who turned professional
in June, ended the day in third place at 12-under after 14
holes. He was among 19 players who could not complete the round
before darkness fell.
Pampling described his two early bogeys as "two silly mistakes"
but remained calm in the knowledge that his swing still felt
good.
"I didn't panic," the two-time PGA Tour winner told Golf
Channel. "You've just got to trust yourself that you're playing
well. I knew it was good so I let it come to me."
He turned his day around with a 12-foot birdie at his sixth
hole, before making a 100-yard up-and-down at the next to save
par.
"That just righted the ship," he said. "I played nice after
that."
Koepka, meanwhile, was not quite firing on all cylinders, but he
credited a hot putter with keeping him near the lead.
"I've made a bunch of putts," he said, adding that his game "was
kind of sloppy at points. I've got to clean a few things up,
just tighten up the driver."
(Reporting by Andrew Both in Cary, North Carolina; Editing by
Mark Lamport-Stokes)
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