Andrew Landry's putter heats up at John Deere Classic

SILVIS, Ill. – Andrew Landry came into the John Deere Classic ranked 175th in Strokes Gained: Putting, a big reason why he was languishing at 170th in the FedExCup.

You wouldn’t know it through two rounds at TPC Deere Run, where Landry has shot 65-65 to get to 12 under and just one shot off the lead of Jhonattan Vegas. He has made just under 152 feet of putts through 36 holes, and is in the top 10 in Strokes Gained: Putting.

“One hundred percent,” Landry said, when asked if the flatstick has been the difference between this year and last, when he won the Valero Texas Open and finished 37th in the FedExCup.

“I've been hitting the ball very, very well all year long,” he said. “I'm top 10 in driving accuracy right now, and that's a good stat to be in. Like I said, the putter has just kind of been letting me down all year long, and it seems to be working pretty good the last two days.”

Coming into the Deere, Landry had just two top-25 finishes and 12 made cuts in 21 starts.

Related: Tee times | Vegas opens up lead with 62 | Projected FedExCup standings

Playing in a threesome with Troy Merritt (69, MC) and Kyle Stanley (66, 8 under), and starting on the back nine, Landry birdied seven of his first 12 holes, including three straight to start the front nine. He ran into tree trouble right of the sixth fairway and made his only bogey.

His tee-to-green stats were solid, as he hit 10 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens in regulation, but that’s been his usual game. It was the short game that stood out. He needed just 27 putts Friday, and is six for seven in scrambling through the first two rounds.

Landry came into the Deere at 190th in Strokes Gained: Around the Green.

“I'm hitting good chip shots, which has kind of been unusual for the last four or five weeks,” he said. “I haven't really been chipping the ball that great. But I don't know, just every week is a little bit different. It's a funny game. Who knows what could happen?”