PARAMUS, N.J. — Jim Furyk was steady. Jason Day was wild. Both wound up with a share of the lead Saturday at The Barclays.

Day lost his golf ball in a mound of high grass and took double bogey on the par-5 13th, the third-easiest hole at Ridgewood. He also took four shots to get down from a bunker on the par-5 17th for a bogey. But the Australian made enough birdies for a 3-under 68.

Furyk played bogey-free for a 69 and joined Day in the lead at 9-under 204.

The final round of his opening FedEx Cup playoff event was shaping up as a shootout, with 15 players separated by three shots.

Hunter Mahan was tied for the lead until his approach went right of the green on the 18th and he took bogey for a 68. He was one shot behind. Matt Kuchar, who won The Barclays the last time it was at Ridgewood in 2010, was among seven players two shots behind.

The group at 6-under 207 included Ernie Els and Erik Compton.

Missing from the mix – but not entirely out of the picture – was Rory McIlroy. The British Open and PGA champion made an early move until he was slowed by a pair of bogeys around the turn. He had a 70 and was five shots behind in his bid for a fourth straight victory.

Adam Scott failed to keep pace. Tied for the lead going in a cloudy Saturday, the defending Barclays champion made only one birdie in a round of 75 and left him five shots out of the lead.

At least he’s still playing. Phil Mickelson missed the 54-hole cut, which is in effect when more than 78 players make the 36-hole cut. For the second straight day, Mickelson hit his tee shot onto the terrace of a grandstand left of the fifth green. This time, he saved par.

That was the lone highlight, however. Mickelson shot a 75 and headed home. It was unclear if he would play the Deutsche Bank Championship next week, which might end his season if he doesn’t stay among the top 70 eligible for the BMW Championship.

Just about everyone else at Ridgewood is still in the running, or so it seems.

“It’s going to be interesting tomorrow,” Day said, who is trying to make the most out of what seems like a lost year because of a thumb injury.

Day injured his thumb while winning the Match Play Championship in February, costing him tournaments and momentum. But a big run now that he’s healthy could help him salvage his season.

The focus figures to be on Furyk, who has gone nearly four years without a victory. Since winning the Tour Championship at the end of 2010, Furyk has had at least a share of the 54-hole lead seven times and has failed to convert.

His last chance was a month ago in the Canadian Open, where Tim Clark beat him by a shot. He also missed out on two majors, the PGA Championship last year at Oak Hill and the U.S. Open in 2012 at Olympic Club.

Furyk said only a few guys had a realistic chance in Canada. This is different.

“Going to be a little bit of a shootout tomorrow,” he said. “Excited about one more opportunity.”

Mahan has gone more than two years without winning. Not only is he trying to extend his streak of reaching the Tour Championship every year, Mahan still is auditioning for Tom Watson as a potential captain’s pick for the Ryder Cup. He took the outright lead with a 15-foot birdie putt on the par-3 15th hole, but he lost a good birdie chance with a poor wedge into the 17th, and then flared his approach to the right on the 18th.

Even so, he’s right there with a chance to win and make a big statement.

And so is everyone else. Even as Scott went sliding backward, Cameron Tringale held his own. It was the first time Tringale had a share of the lead going into the weekend, and he bounced back from an early bogey to stay in the hunt.

Morgan Hoffman, at No. 124 the second-to-last man into the playoffs, had the best round Saturday with a bogey-free 66 and was in the group at 7-under 206. Kevin Chappell had a two-shot lead with he drove the green at No. 5 and converted a long two-putt for birdie. He didn’t make another birdie and dropped three shots for a 71 and was among those two shots behind.

The players at 5-under 208 – four shots back – included Rickie Fowler (67), Ryo Ishikawa (68) and Paul Casey, who had a 71 as he tries to extend his season.

Canada’s David Hearn is tied for 30th after carding 69 in the third round.

PARAMUS, N.J.  – Now that the majors are over, Adam Scott is going after the only big prize left this year – a shot at the $10 million FedEx Cup title.

Scott ran off four straight birdies in the middle of his round Friday, and then closed with an approach that settled a foot from the cup for a tap-in birdie and a 6-under 65. That gave him a share of the 36-hole lead with Cameron Tringale at The Barclays.

Three dozen players were within five shots of the lead, a group that includes British Open and PGA champion Rory McIlroy. The world’s No. 1 player, going after his fourth straight victory, shook off some rust on the range and was nine shots better than his opening round with a 65.

Scott won The Barclays a year ago at Liberty National, and it felt like a bonus in a year in which he won his first major at the Masters. He never had a serious chance at any of the majors this year, and he is looking at the FedEx Cup playoffs differently.

“There’s so much to play for, and for me to be satisfied with the year, I need four really great weeks,” Scott said.

Scott and Tringale were at 8-under 134. Kevin Chappell (67), Brendon Todd (69) and Jim Furyk (69) were one shot behind. The group two shots back included Henrik Stenson (64), Jason Day (64) and Ernie Els, who is playing his sixth straight tournament and shot a 68.

Some scorecards needed more than just numbers, starting with Phil Mickelson.

Lefty took a bogey on the “five-and-dime” fifth hole, thusly named because Byron Nelson always used a 5-iron and a wedge. Mickelson, like so many other players, tried to drive the green and took a wild detour. His shot bounced into the grandstand, behind a row of seats on the thin carpet of the hospitality area. Instead of dropping into deep grass, he chose to play it out of the bleachers, right next to a half-filled glass of beer on a table.

It went too long, over the green and into a bunker, though it gave the crowd a thrill.

“It wasn’t hard to make contact. It was hard to hit it on that skinny little green and get it to stop,” Mickelson said.

He compared it with trying to hit a shot off the cart path, except the carpet “doesn’t scrape up your club as much.”

Mickelson birdied his last hole for a 72 to make the cut on the number.

Seung-yul Noh made a bogey by playing off the wrong green – except it turned into a triple bogey because he didn’t know that he wasn’t allowed to hit off the putting surface from a different hole. His tee shot on No. 11 was so far right that it landed on the third green. Noh took a divot off the green, and a rules official drove up and told him the rule, which comes with a two-shot penalty.

McIlroy kept his excitement to birdies. The 25-year-old from Northern Ireland said he took a week away from golf to celebrate his big summer – two majors and his first World Golf Championship – and paid for it with an opening 74. But the range session Thursday afternoon did wonders, and he went from below the cut line to within five shots of the lead.

He also made those “Freaky Friday” rounds that ruined so many tournaments a distant memory.

His last four second rounds have been 66, 64, 67 and 65. That’s more like “Fun Friday,” and they’ve put the No. 1 player back in the mix.

“It’s a very bunched leaderboard,” McIlroy said. “I’m still five shots behind, but there’s a lot of players between me and the leaders – obviously, a few quality guys at the top, Adam being one of them. So I’m going to have to shoot a couple of rounds similar to today to maybe win this thing.”

Scott was so clean from tee-to-green that he shot 65 and walked away lamenting a pedestrian effort with his putter. He missed six putts inside 12 feet and played the par 5s in 1 over. No wonder he called that “some of the best golf I’ve played all year.”

“It just wasn’t my day today on the greens,” he said.

The top 100 from the FedEx Cup advance to the second playoff event next week outside Boston, with the top 70 advancing to third event in Denver and the top 30 going to East Lake in Atlanta for the Tour Championship and a shot at the $10 million prize.

Lee Westwood kept his PGA Tour season going – barely. He shot a 73 and made the cut on the number at 1-over 143. Because 79 players made the cut, there will be a 54-hole cut Saturday, only the second such cut in the playoffs since the new policy began in 2008.

PARAMUS, N.J.  – Rory McIlroy took a week to celebrate his blockbuster summer and paid for it in The Barclays with his worst start in two months.

He could afford a day off.

That wasn’t the case for players like Bo Van Pelt and Paul Casey, and they picked a good time to produce good scores.

With no guarantee of playing beyond this week, Van Pelt opened with three straight birdies Thursday and chipped in for eagle late in his round for a 6-under 65 that gave him a one-shot lead in the opener of the FedEx Cup playoffs.

Van Pelt is No. 104 in the FedEx Cup. Only the top 100 advance to the next tournament.

Casey is No. 118 with a lot on his mind – specifically the birth of his first child in two weeks – and played bogey-free at Ridgewood to join seven other players at 66. That group included Brendon Todd, who is trying to get Ryder Cup captain Tom Watson’s attention as a possible wild-card pick; and Hunter Mahan, who at No. 62 is in danger of missing the Tour Championship for the first time since the FedEx Cup began in 2007.

Ridgewood featured some of the deepest rough of the year, though the greens were soft enough to allow for birdies if players could keep it in the fairway. The average score was 70.8, with 44 rounds in the 60s.

McIlroy was not among them.

The British Open and PGA champion went 13 holes before he made his first birdie and finished with a 74. That ended a streak of 14 straight rounds under par, and it was his highest score in the opening round since a 74 in the Irish Open in June.

“Fatigue isn’t playing a part,” he said. “It’s I think just not putting the time in that I probably should have over the past week. And I think I allowed myself that and deserved that. But this is the consequence of it and I need to work hard this afternoon and go out tomorrow and shoot a good number.”

McIlroy established himself anew as golf’s No. 1 player with a wire-to-wire win at the British Open, a come-from-behind win at a World Golf Championship and a late charge at Valhalla to win the PGA Championship and become the third-youngest player with four majors.

“I wanted to enjoy it for a week,” he said.

Van Pelt doesn’t have that luxury. He started his year missing seven cuts in nine tournaments before it slowly started to come around over the last month. He felt he was heading in the right direction and received more confirmation Thursday. Van Pelt didn’t make a bogey, and finished strong with a 10-foot birdie putt on the 16th and the eagle on the par-5 17th hole that put him in the lead.

“As poorly as I played at the start of the year, I’m just kind of glad to be here,” Van Pelt said. “Things have been trending in a lot better direction. So I felt fortunate to be here with the position I was in three months ago. I just felt like if I kept doing what I was doing, hopefully I would at least get to next week and then kind of cross that bridge when I got there.”

Jim Furyk, Charles Howell III, Brendon de Jonge, Ben Martin and Cameron Tringale also were in the group one shot behind.

Casey hasn’t had a top 10 on the PGA Tour all season and didn’t make it into the playoffs with much room to spare. He’s not sure how long he’ll be around, although a solid start was sure to help.

“I think today was probably a product of really not having really any expectations and just going out there and smashing it around and having fun,” Casey said.

McIlroy had his fun last week, and he was headed to the range after his opening round to get his game back. He took an early double bogey by barely getting out of a bunker and chipping 15 feet by the hole on No. 12, and then going long into a bunker for a bogey on the par-5 13th.

“It’s not a bad thing,” he said. “A score like this would be tougher to take if I had not just come off the weeks that I had. But at the same time, I want to play well and I want to give myself chances to win tournaments.”

Mahan is the only player to compete in every playoff event since the FedEx Cup began. He is assured of two tournaments, though he needs a good week somewhere to keep alive his hopes of reaching Atlanta for the Tour Championship. The top 70 advance to the third week, and the top 30 get to East Lake for the finale. Plus, he hopes to audition for one of the captain’s picks for the Ryder Cup.

“It will be a bonus to make it to Atlanta and it will be a bonus right now to make the Ryder Cup team,” Mahan said. “So I have nothing to be nervous about or get out there and doubt myself. I have to trust myself because everything I’m doing is good and everything else will kind of take care of itself.”

David Hearn is tied for 32nd after carding 69 in the opening round. Graham DeLaet carded a 7-over 78 and is tied for 121st.

PARAMUS, N.J. – Rory McIlroy isn’t just biding his time for the next seven months until the Masters and his chance to complete the career Grand Slam.

Next up is the FedEx Cup and its $10 million bonus.

“It’s my next goal,” McIlroy said. “So I’m going to put everything into that.”

The FedEx Cup playoffs get underway Thursday at Ridgewood Country Club with The Barclays, the first of four tournaments in which the field size will be reduced each week until 30 players reach the finale at East Lake for the Tour Championship.

McIlroy has won his last three tournaments – two of them majors – and at No. 1 is starting to get some separation from the rest of golf.

He is the top seed at Ridgewood, but given these playoff events are worth five times the value of a regular PGA Tour event, that could be gone in one week. Because this is a Ryder Cup year, and the matches are overseas, the PGA Tour agreed to stage these playoff events in successive weeks.

The top 100 players in the FedEx Cup advance to the second week outside Boston; the top 70 advance to the third week in Denver; the top 30 go to Atlanta.

Here are five things to look for at the start of the FedEx Cup playoffs:

MCILROY’S MISSION: McIlroy went wire-to-wire to capture the British Open and he won a tense back-nine battle at the PGA Championship to become the third-youngest player (25) with four majors. Take a bow, Boy Wonder.

Now get back to work.

“I could just say, `Look, I’ve had a great year, it’s been an awesome summer. I’m going to just see what happens for the next few weeks and not really work hard,'” McIlroy said. “But I want to finish the season well. I want to be up there in contention week in and week out. I feel like the season I had deserves a finish like that.”

TOUGHEST FIELD: The Barclays could make a case as the strongest and deepest field all year on the PGA Tour.

The strongest goes to the PGA Championship, which invited the top 100 in the world ranking. But it also has 20 club pros. The strongest and deepest probably is The Players Championship because all 150 players have a chance to win. But The Players includes winners from the previous year who are not in good form.

The Barclays features the top 125 players from the current year on the world’s strongest tour. Everyone is in good form and prepared for a big stretch.

RIDGEWOOD: Ridgewood Country Club figures to be a stronger test than the final major of the year. The rough is 3 inches and looks even longer and deeper in spots. Some of amateurs struggled to get shots back to the fairway. Jimmy Walker could only advance one shot with a 9-iron.

“Unless you happen to get a good lie or the rough gets matted down, it’s going to be tough to play out of the rough,” Rickie Fowler said.

MICKELSON AND MAHAN: Phil Mickelson and Hunter Mahan are the only players who can extend their streak of reaching the Tour Championship every year since the FedEx Cup began in 2007. Steve Stricker was on that list, but at No. 103, he withdrew with a hip injury and thus his season is over.

Mickelson moved up to No. 45 thanks to his runner-up finish at the PGA Championship. The top 30 make it to East Lake for the Tour Championship. Mahan is at No. 62, and his immediate goal is to stay in the top 70 after the first two events to advance to the third one. Mahan is the only player to have never missed a FedEx Cup playoff event.

FOWLER: Rickie Fowler is having one of his best seasons, considering he hasn’t won. He was runner-up in the U.S. Open and British Open. He had the lead on the back nine (briefly) at the PGA Championship. He had to settle for being the first player in history to finish in the top five at all four majors without winning one.

The byproduct of all this? He qualified for the Ryder Cup team for the first time (he was a captain’s pick in 2010), and he starts the FedEx Cup playoffs at No. 15. That’s important, because as popular as Fowler has become, he has never made it to the Tour Championship. This is his best chance yet.

PARAMUS, N.J. – Chalk this up to one of the more bizarre injuries in golf. Matt Kuchar missed the final major of the year when his back locked up on him from having to sit too long in traffic.

Adding to this forgettable tale: He was shopping for a slip-and-slide.

Kuchar was considered among the favorites at the PGA Championship and felt his game was rounding into form after two days of practice at Valhalla. There was a party planned at the house he was staying in Louisville, and Kuchar went looking for a slip-and-slide for the kids. He tried two stores and couldn’t find one.

“Sat in the car for about an hour fighting traffic and when I got back, I thought, `Boy, my back doesn’t feel very good right now,'” Kuchar said Tuesday.

He figured it would loosen up on Wednesday after some treatment – no such luck.

“I took Wednesday off, and figured by the time Thursday comes around it will have loosened up,” he said. “Got treatment, tried to hit balls. Figured I could warm up into it and just couldn’t warm up into it. I guess I basically had gotten a little out of alignment.”

Kuchar was among four Americans with Ryder Cup chances who were injured during the PGA, leading U.S. captain Tom Watson to say they were “falling like flies.” Jason Dufner withdrew with a neck injury and failed to qualify. Tiger Woods had another back injury and subsequently took himself out of consideration as a pick. Dustin Johnson is on “voluntary leave” to seek professional help for “personal challenges.”

Kuchar, though, appears to be fine.

“The muscles kind of locked up and with the help of chiropractor, massage therapist, physical therapist, got it straight again and feel good,” Kuchar said. “They have given me a handful of little exercises to try to help strengthen the area and help prevent this from happening again.”

Cameron Tringale a communiqué avec les dirigeants de la PGA six jours après la conclusion du Championnat de la PGA pour leur mentionner qu’il croyait avoir commis une faute lors de la ronde finale.

Il a terminé le tournoi en 33e position, mais n’avait pas la conscience tranquille à la suite d’un incident qui s’est produit sur le 11e trou. Il a signé sa carte en inscrivant un pointage de 4 sur cette normale-3. En voulant effectuer le dernier coup roulé, il a posé un geste au-dessus de la balle et estime que cela aurait pu être interprété comme un coup, ce qui signifie que son véritable pointage aurait été de 5.

Il a remis la bourse de 53 000$ qu’il a touchée. Le montant sera redistribué comme il se doit aux autres golfeurs selon le nouveau classement.

En agissant de la sorte, Tringale a provoqué sa propre disqualification.

GREENSBORO, N.C.  – When Camilo Villegas finished his final round in the Wyndham Championship, he was hoping to get into a playoff.

Instead, every other contender stumbled, and the Colombian didn’t have to hit another shot to win his first PGA Tour title since 2010.

Villegas shot a 7-under 63 and finished at 17-under 263. He earned $954,000 and 500 FedEx Cup points in the final regular-season event.

Villegas had four birdies and an eagle on the front nine, added a birdie on the par-5 15th and watched the rest of the tournament from the air-conditioned scorer’s tent with his caddie.

“I was hoping for a playoff,” Villegas said. “I thought I needed one more (stroke).”

Turns out, he didn’t. When the rest of the field struggled late, he wound up with his fourth PGA Tour title and first since the 2010 Honda Classic.

He also became the second first-round leader to win the tournament since its 2008 move back to Sedgefield Country Club and first since Arjun Atwal in 2010.

Bill Haas and Freddie Jacobson tied for second. Haas had a 64, and Jacobson shot 66.

Jacobson needed a par on the final hole to force a playoff, but he rolled his 11-foot putt inches past the hole.

Heath Slocum was two strokes back after his 67. Brandt Snedeker, Webb Simpson and third-round leader Nick Watney were at 14 under.

Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch finished tied for eighth at 13 under.

Villegas had to wait about 40 minutes after his round ended before his victory was secure.

He closed his round with three straight pars, tapping in from about 2 feet on 18 and hoping it was good enough.

It was – once the crowd thinned itself out.

“When the boys got closer to the last hole, you can get a little anxious,” Villegas said. “You don’t have a golf club in your hand. You can’t really control it.”

Watney was at 17 under and appeared headed for his sixth PGA Tour victory before he ran into trouble on 14 and picked up his third bogey of the tournament and second of the day.

He followed with three straight pars, leaving him needing a birdie on the final hole to tie Villegas.

He had one on Saturday – but couldn’t do it again.

He wound up with a double bogey after his tee shot bounced past a cart path and out of bounds.

“I knew what was at stake, and I pushed it a little bit,” Watley said. “Extremely disappointed. If you said at any point, you birdie (the) last hole, you’re in a playoff, you would take it. … That was really a bad shot at a really bad time.”

That came after Jacobson also couldn’t catch Villegas.

The Swede’s second shot on 18 fell short of the green and his 70-foot birdie putt from the front edge rolled well past the hole before he was wide with his par putt.

“It really sucks when you play solid all day and, you know, I really thought it was my day coming in,” Jacobson said. “All I needed was a solid strike to get up there and good feed in and have a good chance of winning.”

Congestion atop the leaderboard was expected after 12 players entered their last trip around Sedgefield within three strokes of third-round leader Watney, who was at 14 under through three rounds.

And Villegas wasn’t one of them.

He began five strokes back but made a quick trip up the leaderboard, with three birdies and an eagle among his first five holes to move to 15 under and put himself within striking distance.

The other main subplot here this week was the last-gasp push for spots in the PGA Tour’s playoffs, which begin next week at The Barclays in New Jersey.

Slocum, who arrived at No. 158 on the points list, was briefly at 17 under but slipped off the pace by closing with two bogeys that also helped keep him out of The Barclays field. He finished at No. 129.

Martin Laird, who was at No. 136, was near the lead all weekend but his tie for 14th could only propel him to No. 127.

Paul Casey, 125th at the start of the week, tied for 18th to put himself safely in the field. Sang-Moon Bae played his way into the playoffs with a tie for 14th that moved him to No. 120. Jhonattan Vegas was at No. 124 but kept himself securely in the field with his tie for eighth.

“The goal was definitely to move on to next week,” Vegas said. “Mission accomplished.”

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Not many players birdied the tricky final hole at the Wyndham Championship on Saturday.

Nick Watney did to top leaderboard.

Watney made a 20-foot birdie putt from the right edge of the green on the par-4 18th for a 5-undee 65 and a one-stroke lead. The five-time PGA Tour winner had a 14-under 196 total with only one bogey through three trips around Sedgefield Country Club.

“I’ve been trying to keep it pretty simple – a lot of fairways and greens, and I’ve been able to do that so far,” Watney said. “I’m super excited about going into tomorrow with the lead. … I’m looking forward to everything that comes with it, all the emotions and wanting to do well and whatnot. Learning how to handle that is a big thing, and I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

Brad Fritsch was second after a 65.

Freddie Jacobson and second-round co-leader Heath Slocum were 12 under. Jacobson shot a 66, and Slocum had a 68.

Former Wyndham winners Brandt Snedeker and Webb Simpson joined second-round co-leader Scott Langley at 11 under in the final event of the PGA Tour’s regular season. Snedeker and Simpson shot 66, and Langley had a 69.

Fritsch was the first to 13 under, but Watney joined him with a birdie on the par-5 15th – his second of the week on that hole.

Then came the sequence that gave him sole possession of the lead, and it came on the second-toughest hole of the day.

Watney plopped his fairway shot from 180 yards onto the right edge of the green, then calmly rolled in his putt for just the fifth birdie of the day on 18.

“It’s a hard hole as it is, and they put the pin on that back right little knob,” Watney said. “It’s a bonus and I’m very happy with it.”

That put him in great position for his second top-10 finish of the year and his first victory since he won The Barclays in 2012.

Fritsch – a Canadian who played college golf at Campbell and lives in the Raleigh suburb of Holly Springs – said he asked the officials at the first tee to announce him as a North Carolinian.

“Just so people would know (and) get a little focus off Webb and a little onto me,” Fritsch said with a laugh.

He made it to 13 under when he birdied the par-3 16th after placing his tee shot about 15 feet from the flagstick.

Fritsch, who is playing his second full season on the PGA Tour, put himself in position to challenge for his first victory on tour and his third top-10 finish.

He’s also got a shot at making the postseason after arriving at Sedgefield at No. 163. The top 125 qualify for The Barclays next week in New Jersey.

He came to this tournament last year at No. 128 last year but missed the cut – and the playoffs.

“Can’t tell you specifically what I found,” Fritsch said. “Staying patient and not freaking out over a bogey, not freaking out over a missed fairway and not getting too aggressive – I think just that, really.”

Andres Romero had the day’s best round, a 64, and Kevin Foley and David Toms each had holes-in-one. Foley aced the par-3 12th with a 5-iron a few minutes before Toms did it on the par-3 seventh.

But so far, the story at Sedgefield has been its tight leaderboard. Thirteen players were within three strokes of the lead.

“I assume that when I tee off, I probably won’t be in the lead or tied for the lead,” Watney said. “So it’s not like I’m protecting anything tomorrow. Just more (of) the same.”

When the second-round co-leaders finally teed off midway through the afternoon, four other players had already joined them atop the field at 10 under.

And by the time the Slocum-Langley pairing had finished its 10th hole, there were five players – including those two – sharing the lead at 12 under.

That didn’t even include Jacobson, who began the day two strokes behind the leaders but made a short, quick rise to 12 under with four straight birdies on his front nine. He fell back with a bogey on the 11th.

One by one, most of them slipped back with back-nine bogeys: Martin Laird had one on the 12th and another four holes later, Slocum followed suit on 11, Langley had one on the 15th and Snedeker had his only bogey of the day on 18.

“You never like being two back with 10 other guys,” Snedeker said. “You know what you’re going to have to do. You have to go out there and shoot good tomorrow. The great mentality, go out there and be aggressive and don’t hold back. Give it everything you’ve got.”

GREENSBORO, N.C.  – Heath Slocum needs a strong finish at the Wyndham Championship to earn a spot in the PGA Tour’s postseason.

Scott Langley might not be on the playoff bubble – but he sure knows how his friend is feeling.

Slocum and Langley each shot 5-under 65 for the second straight day Friday to share the lead at 10-under 130.

Brian Stuard, Nick Watney, Martin Laird and Andrew Svoboda were a stroke back. Watney and Svoboda shot 64, Stuard had a 65 and Laird a 66.

Ryo Ishikawa had the best round of the day – a 62 that was one stroke off the course record and included six birdies on the back nine.

Since the tournament returned to Sedgefield Country Club in 2008, every two-day leader until now had been at 11 under or better.

In what’s become an annual rite of mid-August, the field is littered with players trying to prolong their seasons for at least one more week by cracking the top 125 on the points list and qualifying for the first round of the playoffs, which begin next week at The Barclays in New Jersey.

Langley isn’t one of them.

The second-year pro’s main concern is chasing his first PGA Tour victory.

He isn’t feeling quite as much stress as he did here last year, when he missed the cut yet squeaked into The Barclays at No. 124.

“Last year, so much going through my head as a rookie, not knowing how to handle it,” Langley said. “I was thinking a little too much about things that I really have no control over in terms of keeping my card, what other guys are doing. Lesson learned.”

Langley ran off three straight birdies early in his round and closed with two in a row after putting both of his approach shots less than 6 feet from the stick.

At No. 81 on the points list, his spot next week is safe.

Slocum’s isn’t.

He’s at No. 158 but is well aware that if you can somehow get into the playoffs, anything can happen.

Five years ago, he made the playoffs “by the skin of my teeth” at No. 124 – and then went on to win The Barclays.

“I came into this week trying to create a little bit of momentum for me to whether I could somehow get myself into the playoffs or the (Web.com) finals,” Slocum said.

Slocum had seven birdies and moved atop the leaderboard after a run of four in a row late during his second consecutive 65.

He sank a 20-foot birdie putt on the 13th before twice sticking approach shots within seven feet of the flagstick and converting those short putts.

“It was a good stretch, and obviously at this point, you’re going to need a lot,” Slocum said. “You’re going to have to have some of that to keep yourself in contention and go for it.”

Indeed, that put the Florida player in position to challenge for his fifth PGA Tour victory and first since the McGladrey Classic in 2010.

“I do miss this feeling of being in contention,” Slocum said. “Not being in contention for a while, I’m going to savor it.”

Svoboda briefly joined them at 10 under with a birdie on the 17th, but slipped back after missing a 20-foot par putt on the 18th and closing with a bogey.

First-round leader Camilo Villegas, who opened with a 63, put two strong rounds together after his 69 left him in a pack of players two strokes back.

He had three birdies but closed his round with his first two bogeys of the tournament, coming on the 17th and 18th.

Still, his low score was an indication of progress: He struggled each of the last two times he held a first-round lead, missing the cut at last year’s Honda Classic and finishing 71st at the John Deere.

“The golf course is not easy,” Villegas said. “Seven-under out here was pretty good yesterday. One under out here today wasn’t bad. I’ll take that and keep going.”

Among those bubble players who came to Sedgefield hoping to play their way into the postseason, No. 125 Paul Casey shot a 69 to move to 6 under and put himself well past the cut line of 2 under.

Others ran into bubble trouble: No. 122 Robert Allenby, No. 127 Charlie Beljan and No. 128 Greg Chalmers were among the borderline players who missed the cut.

Brad Fritsch is the leading Canadian, he’s tied for 7th after carding a 63 in Friday’s second round.

GREENSBORO, N.C.  – Heath Slocum needs a strong finish at the Wyndham Championship to earn a spot in the PGA Tour’s postseason.

Scott Langley might not be on the playoff bubble – but he sure knows how his friend is feeling.

Slocum and Langley each shot 5-under 65 for the second straight day Friday to share the lead at 10-under 130.

Brian Stuard, Nick Watney, Martin Laird and Andrew Svoboda were a stroke back. Watney and Svoboda shot 64, Stuard had a 65 and Laird a 66.

Ryo Ishikawa had the best round of the day – a 62 that was one stroke off the course record and included six birdies on the back nine.

Since the tournament returned to Sedgefield Country Club in 2008, every two-day leader until now had been at 11 under or better.

In what’s become an annual rite of mid-August, the field is littered with players trying to prolong their seasons for at least one more week by cracking the top 125 on the points list and qualifying for the first round of the playoffs, which begin next week at The Barclays in New Jersey.

Langley isn’t one of them.

The second-year pro’s main concern is chasing his first PGA Tour victory.

He isn’t feeling quite as much stress as he did here last year, when he missed the cut yet squeaked into The Barclays at No. 124.

“Last year, so much going through my head as a rookie, not knowing how to handle it,” Langley said. “I was thinking a little too much about things that I really have no control over in terms of keeping my card, what other guys are doing. Lesson learned.”

Langley ran off three straight birdies early in his round and closed with two in a row after putting both of his approach shots less than 6 feet from the stick.

At No. 81 on the points list, his spot next week is safe.

Slocum’s isn’t.

He’s at No. 158 but is well aware that if you can somehow get into the playoffs, anything can happen.

Five years ago, he made the playoffs “by the skin of my teeth” at No. 124 – and then went on to win The Barclays.

“I came into this week trying to create a little bit of momentum for me to whether I could somehow get myself into the playoffs or the (Web.com) finals,” Slocum said.

Slocum had seven birdies and moved atop the leaderboard after a run of four in a row late during his second consecutive 65.

He sank a 20-foot birdie putt on the 13th before twice sticking approach shots within seven feet of the flagstick and converting those short putts.

“It was a good stretch, and obviously at this point, you’re going to need a lot,” Slocum said. “You’re going to have to have some of that to keep yourself in contention and go for it.”

Indeed, that put the Florida player in position to challenge for his fifth PGA Tour victory and first since the McGladrey Classic in 2010.

“I do miss this feeling of being in contention,” Slocum said. “Not being in contention for a while, I’m going to savor it.”

Svoboda briefly joined them at 10 under with a birdie on the 17th, but slipped back after missing a 20-foot par putt on the 18th and closing with a bogey.

First-round leader Camilo Villegas, who opened with a 63, put two strong rounds together after his 69 left him in a pack of players two strokes back.

He had three birdies but closed his round with his first two bogeys of the tournament, coming on the 17th and 18th.

Still, his low score was an indication of progress: He struggled each of the last two times he held a first-round lead, missing the cut at last year’s Honda Classic and finishing 71st at the John Deere.

“The golf course is not easy,” Villegas said. “Seven-under out here was pretty good yesterday. One under out here today wasn’t bad. I’ll take that and keep going.”

Among those bubble players who came to Sedgefield hoping to play their way into the postseason, No. 125 Paul Casey shot a 69 to move to 6 under and put himself well past the cut line of 2 under.

Others ran into bubble trouble: No. 122 Robert Allenby, No. 127 Charlie Beljan and No. 128 Greg Chalmers were among the borderline players who missed the cut.

Brad Fritsch is the leading Canadian, he’s tied for 7th after carding a 63 in Friday’s second round.