Hero World Challenge 2015: Friday Leaderboard Scores and Highlights

The second day of this year's Hero World Challenge event, which features 18 of the world's best golfers, saw Jordan Spieth in a familiar spot atop the leaderboard after firing a six-under par 66. 

Spieth isn't alone in the top spot, as Bill Haas and Jimmy Walker kept pace with the 2015 PGA Tour Player of the Year at 11-under par. There's a group of three players behind that duo at 10-under par, so things are wide open in the Bahamas heading into the weekend. 

Pos.	Player	Friday Score	To Par
T1	Jordan Spieth	-6 (66)	-11
T1	Bill Haas	-6 (66)	-11
T1	Jimmy Walker	-5 (67)	-11
T4	Chris Kirk	-7 (65)	-10
T4	Patrick Reed	-7 (65)	-10
T4	Bubba Watson	-5 (67)	-10
T7	Matt Kuchar	-4 (66)	-8
T7	Paul Casey	-2 (70)	-8
T7	Zach Johnson	-2 (70)	-8

After starting the day with two bogeys on his first five holes, Spieth found the groove that helped him win two majors in 2015. The 22-year-old had three straight birdies on holes six through eight and this eagle on No. 11, per the PGA Tour official Twitter account:

Aside from his hole-in-one on Thursday, Spieth played things safe in the first round. It worked well for him with a five-under 67, but today was one of those days that he had to battle early before hitting that second- and third-gear. 

This weekend is also a good time for Spieth to get his game in order, because ESPN's Jason Sobel noted he will be doing some golfing on vacation:

It's never too early to prepare for the Masters, especially for a young guy like Spieth, who has the golf world looking to get where he was in 2015. Keeping his game fresh even before the PGA Tour schedule kicks in will be essential for him to duplicate that success. 

Spieth has already admitted that he's not feeling as tense this week because of the low-key atmosphere at the Hero World Challenge, per the Associated Press (via USA Today).

"I'm ready for some rest," Spieth said. "This is a fun event for us because it's so relaxed, we're able to sit back and I'm not grinding as hard as I would on a normal week. Just trying to really soak it in as a half-vacation, half-tournament."

It must be nice to "sit back" and be 11-under par after two rounds. Spieth also seems to like the Hero World Challenge a lot, per Justin Ray of the Golf Channel:

Moving further down the leaderboard, though not much, Chris Kirk and Patrick Reed were the biggest risers on Friday. The American duo each shot a 65 to pull within one shot of the lead. 

Reed, who already has two top-10 finishes in three PGA Tour events this year, is a name to watch in 2016. He's been a professional for five years with four wins, but the 25-year-old is looking for that one breakthrough performance to vault into the top 15. His best finish in a major was tied for 14th at the 2015 U.S. Open.

Bubba Watson put together a second-consecutive strong performance, firing a five-under par 67, though things looked dicey on the final hole before this ridiculous shot out of the sand, per the PGA Tour official Twitter account:

The powerful left-hander did not have a great start to this season with a 35th-place finish at the WGC-HSBC Champions event in November, so this is a very nice rebound effort as he looks to get back in the win column for the first time since last year's Travelers Championship. 

This is a crowded event at the top, with Sean Martin of the PGA Tour noting at one point on Friday nearly half the field was tied for the lead:

The benefit of having an 18-player field is it will be hard for anyone to fall too far off the pace, so expect to see more movement on Saturday. 

Spieth will be the favorite over the final 36 holes because of his name recognition, but Haas and Walker have matched him shot for shot. Kirk and Reed have plenty of momentum after firing the lowest round of the day.