Woodland Fires 29 on the Back Nine as Houston Open Heads Into the Weekend

Gary Woodland had spent much of the 2025 season close to a breakthrough. In Friday's second round of the Houston Open, the 2019 U.S. Open champion finally put together the kind of round he had been looking for.

Starting on the 10th tee, Woodland birdied his last five holes and six of his last seven, finishing with a 6-under 64. He played the closing nine in 29 and reached 7 under for the tournament, a position from which he can make a push over the weekend.

"I needed that," said Woodland, who received the PGA Tour Courage Award last month. "I haven't had a run like that. It's nice to see some results." He said his coach, Randy Smith, has been telling him the tools are there and that he needs to stay patient.

The 40-year-old recently reunited with Smith after 13 years apart. Smith also coaches Scottie Scheffler. A run of three straight birdies on Thursday had already lifted Woodland's spirits, and he said he had been playing well in practice rounds. Last week he tied for 47th at the Valspar Championship, after missing the cut in three consecutive events. The four-time tour winner has no top-10 finishes this season but has three top-25s. He had surgery to remove a brain lesion in September 2023.

Rasmus Hojgaard, a 24-year-old PGA Tour rookie, also sits at 7 under after a 3-under 67. He struggled off the tee for part of the round and said he was lucky not to lose a ball, but his putting rescued him on both days. His twin brother, Nicolai, was in the same group, the first time the two have been paired as professionals. Nicolai is 2 over through 36 holes and will miss the cut.

"Probably could have been a bit more fun if both of us played nicer these two rounds," Rasmus said. The brothers did not talk much, he said: "We don't talk much in the first place." They helped Denmark win the 2018 World Amateur Team Championship and the Eisenhower Trophy. In 2019, Rasmus won the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open and became the third-youngest winner on the European Tour.

He is chasing a first PGA Tour victory in his seventh start, and world No. 1 Scheffler stands in the way at 11 under. "There's no hiding from that," Hojgaard said, adding that he is not studying the leaderboard and is focused on his own game.

Charles Reiter, 25, is set to make his first cut in a PGA Tour event, in only his seventh start. A University of San Diego product, he is at 3 under after a 64 at Memorial Park Golf Course, nine shots better than his 3-over 73 on Thursday. He had to get through a Monday qualifier to join the 156-player field.

His round included a 70-foot putt on the eighth hole. "Last time I made a putt like that was maybe five years ago," Reiter said. Monday qualifiers have become routine for him this year because he holds conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour. This is his second PGA Tour event of 2025.