Travelers Championship 2020: Phil Mickelson Shoots 63, Takes Lead After Round 2

Phil Mickelson turned in his best single-round score of the season Friday to take sole possession of the lead at the 2020 Travelers Championship. 

After opening the tournament with a 64, Mickelson fared even better with a 63 for a 36-hole score of 13 under par. Lefty is one shot ahead of Mackenzie Hughes and Will Gordon, who tied Brendan Steele for the lowest score Friday (62). 

2020 Travelers Championship Leaderboard 

1. Phil Mickelson (-13)

T2. Will Gordon (-12)

T2. Mackenzie Hughes (-12)

T4. Xander Schauffele (-9)

T4. Brendan Steele (-9)

T4. Rory McIlroy (-9)

T4. Marc Leishman (-9)

T4. Brendan Todd (-9)

Full leaderboard via PGATour.com

Mickelson's performance through two rounds at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut, is an improvement over where his game has been recently. He missed the cut in each of his past three tournaments dating back to the Genesis Invitational in February. 

Per Justin Ray of 15th Club, Mickelson's 36-hole score at the Travelers Championship is the second-best mark of his career:

The second round got off to an uneven start for Mickelson with one bogey and three pars through the first four holes. He turned things around in a significant way from that point on with eight birdies over the next 14 holes. 

Mickelson's 63 is his best single-round score since he opened the Desert Classic with a 60 in January 2019. The 50-year-old is chasing his first victory since the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February 2019. 

There's still much work to be done for Mickelson if he wants to fend off the competition. Gordon and Hughes are right on his heels at 12 under par. 

Gordon is in uncharted waters after being invited to take part in the tournament on a sponsor exemption because he doesn't currently have status on a major tour because of The Tour Finals being canceled amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

A 2019 Vanderbilt graduate, Gordon was named the SEC Player of the Year as a senior. He's shown promising results in six previous PGA Tour events this season, including a 10th-place showing at the RSM Classic in November. 

Per Caesars Palace (h/t ESPN's David Bearman), Gordon was a long shot to win the Travelers Championship when the event started:

Hughes was unable to repeat his dazzling first-round performance, but a solid 68 has him right in the mix heading into the weekend. 

Scrolling down the leaderboard, Rory McIlroy put himself in a good position to challenge for a victory this weekend. He's among a group of five players tied for fourth with a 36-hole score of nine under par. 

McIlroy hurt himself Friday by bogeying two of the four par-three holes. He did make up for those mistakes by immediately hitting birdies on the ensuing holes.