The World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play is back. Thursday's second round is the second of three days of group play. After Friday, the player with the best record in each of the 16 four-man pools will advance to knockout play (ties will be broken via sudden-death playoff). Two rounds apiece will be played Saturday and Sunday to crown a champion.

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This is the only official PGA TOUR event where players go mano-a-mano, and Austin Country Club is a perfect site for this format thanks to its offering of risk-reward holes.

There will be 32 matches in Thursday's second round, and this file will be updated live at the conclusion of each match to keep you apprised of the action from the TOUR’s only match-play event. Return here often to learn about the latest upsets, comebacks and nail-biting finishes.

Click here for scenarios to advance to the Round of 16.

THURSDAY RECAPS

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GROUP 1

Scottie Scheffler (1) def. Alex Noren (38), 5 and 4

The defending champion lost the first hole but nothing more in a rout of Noren on a windy afternoon on Lake Austin. Scheffler (2-0-0) made strings of three consecutive birdies on the front nine and four on the back to keep very much alive his hopes to win the final WGC-Dell Match Play. Scheffler drove the green on the downwind par-4 fifth hole and holed clutch putts on the sixth and seventh. He made the turn 1-up, birdied the par-4 10th and nearly aced on the 11th, which Noren conceded. A two-putt birdie on the par-5 12th and an old-fashioned two-shot birdie on the tempting, 312-yard par-4 13th essentially gave Noren little to no chance to catch the top-ranked player in the world. The match ended on the 14th with two pars.

Player records: Scheffler (2-0-0); Noren (0-2-0)

Davis Riley (54) def. Tom Kim (17), 1-up

Riley lost a 3-up advantage with four holes to play but survived to finish two rounds 1-1-0. With two birdies, a lone bogey and an eagle, Riley endured a late rally from Kim, who birdied the 15th and 16th to close the margin to one hole. The two then made pars on the 17th and 18th to end the match. Kim (1-1-0) played the third, fourth and fifth holes at a cumulative 4-over, then made five birdies coming in. One of those lost a hole, when Riley eagled the par-5 12th. It was, in the end, the most consequential hole of the afternoon for Riley, who needed every bit of that 3-up lead.

Player records: Riley (1-1-0); Kim (1-1-0)

GROUP 2

Jon Rahm (2) def. Keith Mitchell, 4 and 3

Rahm did not appear sharp in his opening-match loss to Rickie Fowler, but Thursday he showed the form that carried him to three TOUR victories already in 2023. Starting at the par-4 ninth, Rahm, 1-up at the time, went birdie-par-birdie-eagle-birdie on his way to a 5-up lead through 13 holes. At the par-5 12th, he blistered a tee shot that traveled 400 yards down the right side of the hole, leaving 178 yards in, and hit his approach to 14 feet. Needing a response to his poor performance on Wednesday, Rahm provided it. He faces Billy Horschel on Friday.

Player records: Rahm (1-1-0); Mitchell (0-1-1)

Billy Horschel (22) def. Rickie Fowler (49), 3 and 2

This match between 2007 U.S. Walker Cup teammates came down to who made the fewest mistakes, and that gave Horschel a big edge. Fowler battled back from 3-down early on the back nine to cut Horschel's advantage to 1-up through 14 – Fowler eagled 12 and birdied 13 – but he could not keep the pressure on late, handing away the 15th and 16th holes with bogeys. Horschel, the 2021 WGC-Dell Match Play champion, was steady, and he can advance from the group with a win against world No. 2 Jon Rahm on Friday.

Player records: Horschel (1-0-1); Fowler (1-1-0)

GROUP 3

Rory McIlroy (3) def. Denny McCarthy (48), 2-up

It can take magic to defeat McIlroy in this type of setting. McCarthy did his best – making three birdies and an eagle in his first six holes, staking a 3-up lead – but no lead is safe against the world’s third-ranked player, which McIlroy proved down the stretch on a late Texas afternoon. McIlroy won three of the next four holes to tie the match, and things remained tied with three holes to play – not even a stuffed wedge to 3 feet on No. 15 was enough for McCarthy to gain an edge, as McIlroy did the exact same, leading to a good-good situation. McIlroy won the par-5 16th with two dynamite shots to 18 feet for a routine birdie, and after a pair of two-putt pars at No. 17, the Northern Irishman uncorked a shot befitting of his budding legacy at the 375-yard, par-4 finishing hole, launching his tee shot with 349 yards of carry, on a direct line toward the flag. The ball released and settled within 4 feet of the hole. McCarthy could not hole his short wedge for eagle, and the match was conceded. Just Rory doing Rory things. “Got a hundred yards up the fairway, and Smylie (Kaufman) was out commentating on the group, and he said, ‘Dude, you just flew it on the green,’” McIlroy said. “And I was like, ‘Oh, OK.’ It was a great swing, and it was a great time to do it.” To say the least.

Player records:McIlroy (2-0-0); McCarthy (0-1-1)

Keegan Bradley (20) def. Scott Stallings (52), 6 and 5

Bradley’s fierce competitive nature is well documented; he doesn’t back down from any challenge, and he isn’t content to rest on modest success. These traits were epitomized Thursday, as the Vermont native assumed a 4-up lead through six holes on the strength of three birdies and an eagle, kept pace around the turn, and closed out Stallings with back-to-back winning birdies on Nos. 12 and 13. Stallings, a fellow New England native, made just one bogey on the day but didn’t produce the requisite fireworks to keep pace with the fiery Bradley, who now turns his attention to Friday’s winner-take-all showdown against McIlroy – whom he faced in Sunday singles at the 2012 Ryder Cup, falling by a 2-and-1 margin. Now Bradley has a chance to make amends.

Player records:Bradley (1-0-1); Stallings (0-2-0)

GROUP 4

Patrick Cantlay (4) def. K.H. Lee (35), 4 and 2

You’ll excuse Cantlay for being subdued and hardly celebrating the fact that he’s made 13 birdies and an eagle across 34 holes of competition the last two days at Austin Country Club. OK, it translates into 13-under and signifies that he’s very much on his game. But Cantlay does subdued very well and when it comes to Austin CC there’s good reason. In four previous trips to this match-play competition, Cantlay has not made it out of group play. Twice his 2-1 record got him into a playoff that he lost. At least he knows there’ll be no playoff this year; the winner of his match Friday against Brian Harman, also 2-0, will advance. There’s some history here, because Cantlay beat Harman in group play in 2021 only to lose a playoff to the feisty left-hander. To set up that 2-0 vs. 2-0 battle, Cantlay had to shake off Lee, which was a struggle early. But from tied through seven, Cantlay played his next nine holes in five birdies, an eagle, and three rock-solid pars to arrive at the sort of match play that he enjoys. None of that round-robin stuff for him; Cantlay professes a passion for the knockout stuff.

Player records: Cantlay (2-0-0); K.H. Lee (0-2-0)

Brian Harman (25) def. Nick Taylor (55), 3 and 2

You might not throw his name in there alongside Scottie Scheffler, Jordan Spieth, Kevin Kisner or Billy Horschel as one of those who seems to thrive and ignite the crowd in this match-play format at Austin Country Club, but Harman seems to have a spunk to him that surfaces whenever he comes here. Having shaken off Taylor, even after a mental lapse or two, Harman is now in a situation where his head-to-head match Friday with Patrick Cantlay will present him the chance to advance out of group play for the third time in four starts here. But after a day in which he made six birdies and a clinching eagle (at the 16th) against a bogey and double bogey, Harman seemed hard-pressed to explain how he’s in such a position. “I haven’t been striking the ball well at all,” said the gutty left-hander. “It’s been really frustrating.” He’ll have a chance against Patrick Cantlay to continue to rid himself of that frustration.

Player records:Harman (2-0-0); Taylor (0-2-0)

GROUP 5

Max Homa (5) def. Kevin Kisner (42), 3 and 2

The past partners at the Presidents Cup and QBE Shootout were foes on this day. Kisner is the match-play maestro, a three-time finalist in this event (winner in 2019, runner-up in 2018 and last year), but few have played better in 2023 than Homa, winner of the Farmers Insurance Open and No. 2 in the FedExCup. This match was tight until Homa closed things out with a late birdie run. Neither player led by more than 1-up in the first 10 holes, and things were tied after Kisner’s bogey at No. 11. Homa then birdied four of the next five holes for a 3-and-2 win.

Player records: Homa (2-0-0); Kisner (0-2-0)

Justin Suh (63) def. Hideki Matsuyama (18), 3 and 1

Suh was competing on the Korn Ferry Tour this time last year. On Thursday, he took down a major champion in his first WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play. Suh never trailed, winning the first hole after Matsuyama made bogey on No. 1. Matsuyama tied the match with a birdie on the next hole, but Suh won Nos. 4 and 5 to go 2-up. He returned to 2-up with a birdie on 15. The match ended on 17 after Matsuyama made another bogey, his fourth of the day. Suh had two birdies and one bogey.

Player records: Suh (1-1-0); Matsuyama (1-1-0)

GROUP 6

Xander Schauffele (6) def. Aaron Wise (40), 2 and 1

Golf is forever a difficult game to figure out. Things that appear to fit seamlessly sometimes have not proven to be that way. Schauffele making four trips to the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play without making it out of group play is the perfect example. Schauffele shrugs, but he can’t explain it either, though he appreciates that his game is viewed as well-suited for match play.

In effectively controlling his match against Wise (he led from the fifth hole on), Schauffele has put together two quality days to put himself in the driver’s seat. (He beat Cam Davis, 4 and 3, in the opening round.) Scheduled to play Tom Hoge in Friday’s third round, Schauffele knows that he needs a win to avoid the dreaded 2-1 record that brings a playoff into the picture. “Just go 3-0,” said Schauffele.

In beating Wise, Schauffele used a pair of explosive bursts – birdies at Nos. 4, 5 and 6, then quick ones at 9, 11 and 12. A sloppy bogey at the 14th by Schauffele enabled Wise to get within one hole, but the match was essentially ended at the 16th with his seventh birdie of the match.

Player records:Schauffele (2-0-0); Wise (1-1-0)

Cam Davis (64) def. Tom Hoge (23), 3 and 1

Though he’s young and still finding his way through the PGA TOUR world, Davis has a firm grip on one thing, for sure. “Keeping the bogeys off the card and plenty of birdies on it is always a good way to go in this format,” said the Aussie. “It’s nice to see that.”

Not that it was a start-to-finish masterpiece or anything, because it wasn’t. Davis’ early birdies at the fifth and sixth holes were matched by Hoge. It wasn’t until the seventh – and on the gift of a Hoge bogey – that Davis seized his first lead in a match he desperately needed to win given his opening loss to Xander Schauffele.

Hoge did scratch back to tie the game at the par-4 eighth, but from the 10th hole onward, Davis was immense. He made four birdies over his last eight holes to breathe some life into his changes to win group play. He’ll need a Friday win over Aaron Wise, then hope that Hoge upsets Schauffele. It would create a tie between 2-1 records and Davis would relish the chance to go up against Schauffele again in a playoff.

Player records:Davis (1-1-1); Hoge (0-2-0)

GROUP 7

Harris English (37) def. Will Zalatoris (7), 5 and 3

True, there are times when defense is needed in golf. But English discovered that this round-robin, sprint-to-the-finish WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play isn’t one of those times. “(I was) trying to be the aggressor,” said English after dismissing Zalatoris in very tidy fashion. Having scolded himself for playing too cautiously in Wednesday’s loss to Ryan Fox, English jumped on Zalatoris with a birdie at the first hole and never took his foot off the pedal. By the eighth hole, he had made four birdies to assume a 3-up lead.

Clearly, Zalatoris continues to search for the consistency that made him a force in 2021-22 and while English maintained his domination with five birdies in 15 bogey-free holes, he acknowledged “that Will wasn’t feeling his best today and didn’t have his best stuff today.” There was no way, however, that English was going to ease up. That would constitute a defensive mindset, and that’s been tossed out the window. “There are a lot of birdies that can be had out here,” said English, who made five of the six that were made in the match.

Player records: English (1-1-0); Zalatoris (0-2-0)

Andrew Putnam (56) def. Ryan Fox (29), 2 and 1

There’s no arguing with Putnam’s assessment that “you knew pars weren’t going to win; you had to make birdies.” The problem is, Fox would likely concede that one can’t make birdies if one doesn’t convert chances when the putter is in hand.

“He hit some great shots and didn’t capitalize,” acknowledged Putnam.

Unfortunately for the powerfully built Fox, the hiccups came late and changed the complexion of a match he seemed to be in control of. He had a 1-up lead standing on the 13th tee. That is where Fox delivered thunderous heroics Wednesday, a drive to 6 feet for eagle on the 308-yard hole, but he would miss a 10-footer for birdie on this day and the wayward birdie tries would continue at 15 (from 4 feet), 16 (10 feet) and 17 (15 feet).

Putnam, on the other hand, converted birdie tries at 15 and 17 to remain undefeated in group play.

Player records:Putnam (2-0-0); Fox (1-1-0)

GROUP 8

Si Woo Kim (34) def. Viktor Hovland (8), 4 and 3

Kim, who rolled over Chris Kirk in his opening match, played a flawless match against Viktor Hovland, the No. 9 player in the world. Through 14 holes, Kim built a 4-up lead, making five birdies and not making a single bogey. Hovland, the group's top-seeded player, started slowly and could not climb out of the hole Kim put him in with his steady play. When Hovland missed an 8-footer for birdie at 15, the match was over. Kim takes on 2013 WGC-Dell Match Play champion Matt Kuchar on Friday. Hovland is eliminated from contention to advance.

Player records: Kim (2-0-0); Hovland (0-2-0)

Matt Kuchar (58) tied Chris Kirk (28)

This was Georgia Tech vs. Georgia in a match of two veteran players getting their games back on track. Kuchar, at 44 the oldest player in the field, tied the match with a two-putt birdie at the par-5 12th (Kirk missed birdie from 7 feet.) It still was tied at 16, where Kirk took a lash at his third shot from tall grass and sent a shot over the green and out-of-bounds, losing the hole. It was Kuchar's first lead. Kirk stuffed his tee shot at 17 but missed from 6 feet. At 18, both players hit approaches in tight. Kirk made from 7 feet, Kuchar missed from 5 feet. Tie. Kuchar was seeking his 36th victory at the Match Play, which would tie Tiger Woods' all-time mark. Kuchar has to beat Si Woo Kim to advance.

Player records: Kuchar (1-0-1); Kirk (0-1-1)

GROUP 9

Collin Morikawa (9) tied Adam Svensson (44)

Fans who picked up this match early in the back nine were privy to plenty of fireworks. After the match stood tied at the turn, Svensson made four consecutive birdies on Nos. 10-13, only to secure a 1-up advantage in the process. After Svensson’s winning birdie on 10, the two-time major winner Morikawa tied the par-3 11th with a 12-foot birdie, then holed out from 38 yards for eagle at the par-5 12th to essentially steal the hole – Svensson faced just 21 feet for eagle but could not convert. The Canadian drained a 16-foot birdie to win the 13th, but Morikawa had kept within striking distance, which came in crucial when he won the short par-4 18th with an up-and-down birdie to secure a tie. Morikawa remains alive and well into Friday’s decisive match against Jason Day.

Player records:Morikawa (1-0-1); Svensson (0-1-1)

Jason Day (32) def. Victor Perez (51), 2 and 1

Recent buzz, both statistically and anecdotally, suggests Day is recapturing some of the form that brought him atop the Official World Golf Ranking in the mid-2010s. Day’s early play Thursday was uneven – he surrendered a 2-up advantage with consecutive bogeys on 7 and 8 – but his finishing stretch indicated those aforementioned signs of sky-high potential. After Perez won the par-5 12th with a chip-in eagle to go 1-up, Day answered with back-to-back winning birdies at 13 and 14. Day drained an 11-foot birdie to win the par-5 16th, and a routine two-putt par at the par-3 17th sufficed to tie the hole and close the match. Day controls his destiny into Friday’s group finale against Collin Morikawa, where the Aussie can advance to the Round of 16 with a win or tie.

Player records:Day (2-0-0); Perez (0-2-0)

GROUP 10

Tony Finau (10) def. Adrian Meronk (45), 4 and 3

Finau is a dangerous player in match play, which he showed on Thursday against first-timer Meronk. Finau was 1-up standing on the ninth tee, then reeled off five consecutive birdies. Included was a nice up-and-down from standing on a railroad tie at the 13th to go 3-up, and he added his seventh birdie of the day to end the match at 15. In four previous WGC-Dell Match Play starts, Finau never has made it out of his pool. He can advance with a win over Kurt Kitayama on Friday.

Player records: Finau (2-0-0); Meronk (1-1-0)

Kurt Kitayama (19) def. Christiaan Bezuidenhout (60), 2 and 1

Kitayama, the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard champion, bounced back nicely from an opening loss by pulling away late against Bezuidenhout. Kitayama was 1-down as the match went to the par-4 13th, then rode back-to-back birdies to a 1-up lead and won the 15th when his opponent made bogey. Both players birdied the par-5 16th, and when Bezuidenhout failed to birdie 17 (he missed the green), Kitayama had two putts for the win.

Player records:Kitayama (1-1-0); Bezuidenhout (0-2-0)

GROUP 11

J.J. Spaun (61) def. Sahith Theegala (26), 5 and 4

Theegala got off to a rough start, making bogeys at three of his first four holes, and Spaun took full advantage, winning three holes with pars. Spaun birdied Nos. 5 and 6 (Theegala matched him at 6) and was 4-up. When he knocked in a 17-footer at No. 10, Spaun had three birdies in the round and was 6-up. Theegala won 11 and 12, but Spaun put another birdie on him at 13 to return to 5-up. Spaun will face Min Woo Lee on Friday.

Player records: Spaun (2-0-0); Theegala (0-2-0)

Matt Fitzpatrick (11) def. Min Woo Lee (41), 2-up

This match pitted the reigning U.S. Open champion against the brother of the U.S. Women's Open champion (Minjee Lee). Fitzpatrick has been trying to get something going in his game, and he finally started to see some putts go down, making five birdies over his first 13 holes to go 1-up. Lee missed a 10-footer for par at 15, and Fitzpatrick doubled his lead. Fitzpatrick made a clutch 17-foot birdie putt at 17 to match Lee and stay 2-up. Fitzpatrick then walked in a 16-foot birdie putt at 17 (his seventh birdie) for the win he needed.

Player records: Fitzpatrick (1-1-0); Lee (1-1-0)

GROUP 12

Mackenzie Hughes (50) def. Shane Lowry (21), 4 and 3

There’s a good chance Hughes wasn’t thinking, “Hey, if I’m 2-up without making a birdie, imagine what will happen when I do start scoring?” But if he was, he would have discovered the answer early and emphatically. Staked to an early advantage on a pair of Lowry bogeys, Hughes put a bearhug on the proceedings when he went birdie-eagle-birdie at Nos. 5-6-7. From 5-up through seven, he would never be threatened, but to toss down an exclamation point, Hughes made three birdies on six back-nine holes to keep alive his chances to advance in group play. In Friday’s match, Hughes will take on Taylor Montgomery, who at 2-0 is leading Group 12. Lowry, who played just 28 holes in two losses, is eliminated.

Player records:Hughes (1-1-0); Lowry (0-2-0)

Taylor Montgomery (47) def. Jordan Spieth (12), 2 and 1

Fans loved it. But Montgomery fully expected it. “Jordan doing Jordan things,” laughed the PGA TOUR rookie about yet another highlight-reel Spieth escape. Long and right and mingling with rocks and trees at the par-3 seventh, Spieth merely ran a pitch some 30 feet past the hole, then ran his par-save dead center. “I knew it was coming,” shrugged Montgomery, who remained 1-down. Wild as that was, however, it was what no one saw coming that stole the spotlight in this match – Montgomery winning the 13th and 14th holes on Spieth bogeys, then the 15th with a 90-yard wedge stuffed to 4 feet for birdie. From 1-down to 2-up, it was enough for the unheralded 28-year-old to put himself in a position of control. Should he beat Mackenzie Hughes in Friday’s match, Montgomery will advance to the Round of 16.

Player records: Montgomery (2-0-0); Spieth (1-1-0)

GROUP 13

Sam Burns (13) def. Adam Scott (33), 1-up

The two unbeatens from Group 13 had a scrappy day in the wind at times, which made for an odd, but close, match. In one five-hole stretch on the first nine, Burns made two birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey. He actually won the eighth hole with a bogey when Scott made double bogey. Scott was level par and tied going to 12; Burns went 1-up at 13, where he had a short look for birdie and Scott bladed a chip. Scott tied the match with an approach to 17 inches at the par-4 15th. The match was tied at 18, where Scott drove it left into a penalty area. He made bogey, leaving Burns two putts from 22 feet to move to 2-0.

Player records: Burns (2-0-0); Scott (1-1-0)

Seamus Power (30) def. Adam Hadwin (53), 1-up

Power, who lost a tough opening match to Adam Scott, pulled out the victory over Hadwin with birdies on two of his last three holes. This was a tight match throughout, with neither player ever enjoying anything bigger than a 1-up lead. In fact, Hadwin was 1-up as late as the 16th tee. But he made bogey on the par-5 16th (Power birdied), and both players had good birdie looks at the short 18th. Hadwin missed from 11 feet (similar to a putt he missed at 17), and Power earned the win when he converted his 4-footer for birdie. Power plays Sam Burns (2-0-0) on Friday.

Player records: Power (1-1-0); Hadwin (0-2-0)

GROUP 14

Russell Henley (31) def. Ben Griffin (62), 5 and 4

As much as one can carry momentum from a match-play loss, Henley might have felt some into Thursday at Austin CC; the University of Georgia alum was 5-down to Lucas Herbert at the turn Wednesday but took the match to the 18th hole. Henley started steady in his match against the former mortgage loan officer Griffin – five straight pars, good for a 1-up advantage – and turned it up with six birdies in his next eight holes. Some were crafty, like a long iron to 11 feet for a winning birdie at the par-3 seventh to go 2-up, and others flashy like an 85-yard wedge to 15 inches at the par-4 13th to put him 5-up. Griffin did make three birdies on the day, but Henley’s tenacity was too much – it likely would have been for most anyone. Both remain in contention to advance to the Round of 16.

Player records: Henley (1-1-0); Griffin (1-1-0)

Lucas Herbert (46) def. Tyrrell Hatton (14), 2 and 1

Hatton played steady with three birdies against a bogey – and he didn’t trail until the 16th hole – but Herbert hung around and took advantage in crunch time to maintain control of his destiny into the final day of group play. Hatton was 1-up to the par-5 12th hole, but Australia's Herbert uncorked a 412-yard drive, leading to a 166-yard approach to 9 feet and subsequent winning eagle to bring the match tied. The match remained tied to the par-5 16th, which Herbert won with a 6-foot birdie, and he closed the deal with a 5-foot birdie at the par-3 17th after Hatton couldn’t convert from 22 feet. The Englishman is eliminated from contention to advance.

Player records: Herbert (2-0-0); Hatton (0-2-0)

GROUP 15

Davis Thompson (57) def. Sepp Straka (27), 4 and 3

Thompson played well in his Match Play debut Wednesday; he just drew the red-hot Cameron Young, who began their match with nine straight 3s en route to victory. In a Thursday matchup of Georgia alums, Thompson rallied from back-to-back opening bogeys – he was 2-down through four holes – with bogey-free golf the rest of the way. Thompson won holes 5, 7, 9 and 13 with pars, in addition to a winning birdie on hole 6, and he closed the match with a 6-foot birdie at the par-4 15th. The TOUR rookie stays alive into Friday, while Straka is eliminated from contention to advance to the Round of 16.

Player records: Thompson (1-1-0); Straka (0-2-0)

Cameron Young (15) def. Corey Conners (36), 1-up

Conners knew he’d have his hands full after Young’s prodigious showing in Wednesday’s match, making nine straight 3s en route to victory over Davis Thompson. The Canadian fared admirably with six birdies against one bogey Thursday, but in the end, the Demon Deacon’s firepower proved just enough to eke out victory on the final hole. The match was defined by symmetry throughout – fourteen of the first 15 holes were tied, the only exception being Conners’ winning birdie at the par-3 seventh. Standing 1-down on the par-5 16th, though, Young turned up the heat. He lasered a 252-yard approach from the left rough to 17 feet, then drained the eagle from the fringe as Conners faced 8 feet for birdie. Young made a winning 12-foot birdie at the par-3 17th, ultimately the deciding advantage as No. 18 was tied with pars. Young and Conners both remain alive into Friday; Young holds pole position in the group.

Player records: Young (2-0-0); Conners (1-1-0)

GROUP 16

J.T. Poston (43) def. Sungjae Im (16), 1-up

Proving to be a competitor with a diversified gameplan for this match-play business, Poston might be the most unheralded name in position to march through group play. But few will match him for maintaining composure when the heart gets racing. One day after leading the entire way in his win over Tommy Fleetwood, Poston never had the edge against Im until the 17th hole. How he held onto it at the 18th hole, however, says a lot about this quiet man nicknamed “The Postman.” Without question, he delivered at the final green, first giving a nod to Im that his second shot to about a foot-and-a-half was a conceded birdie, then staring down a 7-footer of his own that he subsequently jammed into the back of the hole for a clutch birdie to nail down his win. “Tried not to get too ahead of myself or worry too much about what he’s doing,” said Poston of his strategy when he found himself 3-down through 12. Birdies at 13, 15 and 16 got him tied, and Im’s sloppy three-putt bogey put “The Postman” in delivery mode. He could deliver himself into the Round of 16 with a win Friday over Maverick McNealy.

Player records: Poston (2-0-0); Im (1-1-0)

Tommy Fleetwood (24) tied Maverick McNealy (58)

How can you lose when you tie? When in a unique round-robin match-play format, Fleetwood slams home a 12-footer from behind the hole to make birdie and tie his match against McNealy. Odds were enormously long, mind you, but had Fleetwood missed, McNealy would have won and been in position to beat J.T. Poston on Friday to get into a playoff to win group play. Fleetwood’s clutch putt, however, meant that he and McNealy were both 0-1-1 and eliminated. Likely, though, neither of these competitors could have felt to close to being in the hunt, given their Wednesdays. Fleetwood never had the lead in his loss to Poston; McNealy got trounced, 8 and 6, by Im. This match mirrored some of their woes – McNealy made two double bogeys, Fleetwood didn’t make a birdie till the 11th. They still delivered late drama, though, as McNealy birdied 15 and eagled 16 to go 1-up, then Fleetwood drew the curtain down with a gut-check birdie. Even eliminated, it had to feel good.

Player records:Fleetwood (0-1-1); McNealy (0-1-1)