Valero Texas Open 2018: Zach Johnson, Ryan Moore Lead After 2 Rounds

If the first two rounds of the Valero Texas Open are any indication, it looks like you're going to have to go low to take home the tournament. 

Zach Johnson and Ryan Moore sit atop the leaderboard after the first two rounds of play at nine under overall, giving them a one-stroke lead over Andrew Landry and Grayson Murray. Johnson shot a seven-under 65 to tie Martin Laird (-6) for the best round of the day, while Moore built on his solid first round with a five-under 67.

Laird, Ben Craine and David Hearn round out the top five, tied at six under.

Johnson, who played his first 13 holes at three over before going on a tear on his final five holes Thursday and all 18 Friday, said it came down to putting.

"You just never know. That's the beauty of this game," Johnson told reporters. "I didn't have anything going putting-wise. I felt like I was hitting some solid shots and wasn't getting rewarded, and you've just got to stay in it. You've got to persevere, grind it out, fight for pars. Shoot, I made some good pars all while being 3 over. You just never know."

Johnson previously won this event in 2008 and 2009. However, that was before the tournament moved to TPC San Antonio.

"The confidence is there, and when you can step on the tee with this kind of wind, you trust your clubs and trust your ball, that's pretty important," Johnson said. "I felt good. It was hard, I'm not going to deny that. That was one of the better 27-hole stretches that I've had in a long time."

Moore closed with three birdies in his last five holes, starting with a birdie on the par-five 14th that came after a 50-foot putt for eagle missed.

"That was a huge momentum putt there," Moore told reporters. "It was a tough putt from down there with a lot of wind. That green is pretty exposed and ... yeah, really short and committed to that second putt really well and knocked it right in the middle."

The Texas Open isn't exactly filled with elite players; Sergio Garcia was the top-ranked player in the field, and he was the only top-20. Garcia also missed the cut after going 74-72 in his first two rounds.

The next highest-ranked player, No. 21 Matt Kuchar, sits tied for 41st at one under.