HSBC Champions 2017: Friday Leaderboard Scores and Highlights

Dustin Johnson boosted his chances of breaking his own tournament record at the 2017 HSBC Champions on Friday after a second-round 63 saw him move into the lead at Sheshan Golf Club in Shanghai, China. 

The 2013 champion climbed 10 places to the top of the leaderboard and holds a one-stroke advantage over compatriot Brooks Koepka, whose second-round 68 wasn't sufficient to keep his spot at the head of the leaderboard.

Johnson ended his 2013 tournament on 24 under par, a score that is yet to be beaten in this tournament, and he's on course to best that tally four years on following a heroic Thursday outing.

England's Justin Rose lies four shots off leader Johnson and remains level with Thai contender Kiradech Aphibarnrat midway through the competition, while Tyrrell Hatton sits at six under, seven shots from the summit.

Last year's champion Hideki Matsuyama had a round to forget and shot 74 for the second day in succession to see his hopes of a title defence all but end. World No. 5 Jon Rahm is also way off the pace after failing to break par for a second time in as many days.

Read on for a roundup of Friday's second round from the 2017 HSBC Champions tournament, complete with an updated leaderboard and highlights of the day's best bits.

Friday Leaderboard (To Par)

1. Dustin Johnson: 63 (-13)

2. Brooks Koepka: 68 (-12)

T3. Justin Rose: 68 (-9)

T3. Kiradech Aphibarnrat: 70 (-9)

5. Patrick Reed: 70 (-8)

T6. Matthew Fitzpatrick: 69 (-7)

T6. Matt Kuchar: 70 (-7)

T6. Brian Harman: 69 (-7)

T6. Henrik Stenson: 69 (-7)

10. Tyrrell Hatton: 70 (-6)

Visit the official European Tour website to view the leaderboard in full.

Recap

Johnson's form in 2017 thus far always meant he was likely to feature among the favourites in Shanghai, and the PGA Tour took special note of his recent successes in preparation for his HSBC Champions crusade:

If four under on the opening day served as a sturdy foundation, "DJ" found room to add more adventure in Friday's performance. Not only did Johnson manage to root out any bogeys witnessed in Thursday's opening round, but his nine uninterrupted birdies meant he recorded the best round at this year's tournament so far.

His 63 bested the 64 Koepka carded on Thursday, and it was his back nine in particular that saw Johnson draw praise, and the Press Association's Phil Casey lauded his swift rise from being in the chasing pack to leader:

The 11th and 14th were the only holes across the back nine on which DJ failed to gain a shot, improving significantly on his opening round, while Koepka couldn't quite match the same standards of his first 18 holes.

Koepka was leading midway through his round until Johnson started to turn it up a notch, although the European Tour showed how the former did well to respond to pressure when the onus was on him:

The 27-year-old bookended his second round with birdies on the first, second, 16th and 17th before having to settle for par on the 18th, the same hole he managed to eagle one day previous.

Rose ended Day 2 tied for third on nine-under, although two bogeys between the 12th and 18th meant he was limited to a 68 on Friday:

Matthew Fitzpatrick, 23, resides just a little further down the leaderboard and snagged a share of sixth place after his three under round kept him among the dark horses, although it was close to ending on a brighter note:

There doesn't look to be any hope left for reigning champion Matsuyama, meanwhile, as he's at four over par after two rounds.

It will require two days of consistent quality to prevent Johnson winning when he's in this kind of form, and his Friday display may come to set the tone for the remainder of the competition in Shanghai.