FedEx St. Jude Classic 2017: Charl Schwartzel Part of 3-Way Tie After Round 2

Charl Schwartzel, Chez Reavie and Sebastian Munoz are tied for the lead in the 2017 FedEx St. Jude Classic at nine-under par following Friday's second round at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee.

Stewart Cink is one shot back, and Ben Crane is two off the pace to round out the top five. In all, the huddled leaderboard features 24 other golfers within five shots of the three-player logjam in first place, setting the stage for a highly competitive weekend.

Here's a look at the updated scores of the leaders through 36 holes:

Schwartzel looks back on track after a brief lull following his third-place finish in the Masters. He missed the cut in the Players Championship, withdrew from the AT&T Byron Nelson and finished a distant 35th in the Memorial after a final-round 76 last week.

The 2011 Masters champion is always at his best when he's locked in with the irons. His play off the tee and on the greens was mundane throughout Friday's round, but he continued to put himself in good position with his approach shots, avoiding any serious trouble in good scoring conditions.

His putt to take the lead, which he held until a late bogey, was highlighted by the PGA Tour:

While Schwartzel is a common presence near the top of the leaderboard, the same can't be said for Reavie, who's posted back-to-back sub-70 rounds for just the second time since February.

The 35-year-old journeyman went through a stretch earlier in the season where he missed six cuts in a span of seven starts. In addition, his own PGA Tour win came at the 2008 RBC Canadian Open, and he hasn't secured a top-10 finish since the Sony Open in mid-January.

There were no signs of those struggles during the second round. He carded three birdies and an eagle en route to a five-under 65 to put himself in a tie for the lead.

The PGA Tour passed along the Arizona State University product's comments after the round:

Ben Crane is another unexpected contender at seven-under par. He won this event back in 2014, but that's his only PGA Tour victory since 2011, and he hasn't finished better than 47th so far in 2017.

Even though the Oregon native hasn't struck the ball particularly well through two days, his putter is on fire, and that makes him a threat heading into moving day. Better play from tee to green would give him a chance to make a serious charge.

Mike Ceide of WREG provided remarks from an upbeat Crane:

On the opposite end of the happiness spectrum, Rickie Fowler (+4) headlined the group of players who failed to survive the one-over cut line. Other notable names making an early exit include Jim Furyk (+2), Scott Piercy (+3) and Russell Henley (+8).

Schwartzel should open Round 3 as the favorite given the lack of in-form players around him near the top of the leaderboard. Don't be surprised if Adam Scott (-5) continues to climb toward the top Saturday, though. He carded a six-under 64 on Friday to tie the day's best round.