Valspar Championship 2018: Tiger Woods in 2nd; Corey Conners Leads After Friday

Tiger Woods is tied for second place, two strokes behind leader Corey Conners, following Friday's second round of the 2018 Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club in Palm Harbor, Florida.

Woods, currently four under, held the solo lead for a stretch during the morning wave of play in Round 2. He fired a three-under 68 that included four birdies and a bogey on No. 9, his final hole of the day. Paul Casey, Brandt Snedeker, Ryan Palmer and Kelly Kraft are also four under.

Conners, the leader after each of the first two days and at six under overall, reached seven under after posting three birdies over his first seven holes Friday. A double bogey on the fourth dropped him closer to the pack, though.

Woods' progression in his latest comeback from lingering back problems has yielded legitimate hope he's ready to contend for titles again.

The 14-time major champion has dealt with various issues during his four appearances this year, most notably major driving woes during his missed cut at the Genesis Open last month, but he's been able stay healthy and quickly fix the kinks in his game, which wasn't the case in his previous returns.

He was one putt away from a blemish-free card in the second round. His six-foot par attempt on the ninth wouldn't fall, which dropped him from atop the leaderboard.

Woods, who's seeking his 80th PGA Tour victory, still had a strong all-around performance to put himself firmly in the mix heading into the weekend.

The PGA Tour highlighted some of his best shots from Friday:

Meanwhile, Conners has emerged as a surprise contender.

The 26-year-old Canadian is making his 11st start of the 2017-18 campaign, finishing no better than 29th in any prior appearance. He only recorded three top-10 results in 23 outings on the Web.com Tour last year.

He's suddenly turned into a worldbeater for the past couple days. Aside from a forgettable three-putt from 20 feet on No. 4, he was on target all day en route to four birdies and a two-under 69.

Kyle Porter of CBSSports.com noted the oddsmakers are buying Tiger's comeback more than Conners' hot start, however:

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Jason Dufner (four over), Jordan Spieth (five over), Rory McIlroy (five over) and Henrik Stenson (six over) were among the high-profile players to end up below the three-over cut line.

Looking ahead, all eyes will be on Woods this weekend. An 80th victory would move him within two of tying Sam Snead for the all-time PGA Tour record and more importantly make a massive statement with The Masters now less than a month away.

It's otherwise a wide-open tournament with 27 other golfers within five shots of Conners' lead with 36 holes to play.