Denny McCarthy made 160 feet of putts on his way to a seven-under-par 63 that rocketed him into a tie for the second-round lead with Hideki Matsuyama of Japan at the FedEx St Jude Championship, on a day when the Irish contingent lost ground.
In the first leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs at TPC Southwind, McCarthy and Matsuyama (64) stand at 11-under, one stroke ahead of Sam Burns (63) and two in front of Scottie Scheffler (65).
Justin Rose carded a second straight 66 to sit in a tie for fifth at eight-under with Nick Dunlap (65).
Rory McIlroy had a day to forget, carding a round of 73 with three bogeys and a double bogey as he finished the day on three-over for the tournament.
Seamus Power's round of 70 saw him slide down the leaderboard to three-under, while Shane Lowry is a shot behind on two-under after signing for a 68.
McCarthy is known as one of the best putters on tour, but so far that has not translated into any victories. He could become the third player to make a play-off event his maiden PGA Tour title, following Camilo Villegas (2008) and Will Zalatoris (2022).
McCarthy's highlight birdie putts included a 26-footer for birdie at the par-3 fourth hole; a 28 1/2-footer at the par-three eighth; and a 32-footer at the par-four 13th.
"Listen, I've missed a couple of short ones, too. I think these greens are really tricky in close," McCarthy said. "They're really subtle with the grain, hard to find the slope... so I've missed a couple ones I'd like to have back, but they probably all even out with some of the longer ones I make.
"I'm just trying to put, like I said, the same amount of intention and focus on each putt, whether it's short or long, trying to make it but not trying to ram it 8 feet by."
McCarthy has been dealing with a labrum injury in his hip.
"It's bothering me, and I've been able to do enough the last few days to push through it," he said. "Like I said, the heat helps it."
