Marc Leishman birdied his final hole for a 2-under 68 and a share of the second-round lead Friday in the Travelers Championship. Leishman shot 68, Henley shot 65, and Van Aswegen 66.
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The 49-year-old Kelly is seeking his fourth PGA Tour win and first since the 2009 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Kelly had a 70 after sharing the first-round lead with a 64.
Blayne Barber, at five under, shot the best round of the day with a six-under 64 to climb 85 spots up the leader board.
Fellow American playing partners Matt Kuchar (67 for 136) and Patrick Reed (67 for 137) and Watson made for a high spirited threesome as they were all looking forward to playing in the upcoming Olympic golf tournament at the Rio Games.
Berger, victor of this year’s FedEx St. Jude Classic, shot a three-under 67. Reed, who turned 26 on Friday, also shot 67 and is tied with Watson at 3-under.
Twice Masters champion Bubba Watson, who won the Travelers Championship for a second time past year, stood at three-under 137 after a level-par 70.
Already in contention, Berger stepped on the gas pedal Saturday, dropping nine birdies against just a single bogey.
Ken Duke (Arkadelphia, Henderson State) and Andrew Landry (Arkansas Razorbacks) did not make the cut. On Monday, he topped the five qualifiers with 7-under 64 at nearby Victory Links.
Berger began the third round, which saw tee times brought forward because of anticipated bad weather, level in a four-way tie for the lead at seven under but went eight under for the day at TPC River Highlands to take command.
Jeff Maggert and Rod Spittle shot 66, and two-time champion Bernhard Langer was at 67 along with Colin Montgomerie, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Woody Austin, Kevin Sutherland, Carlos Franco, Scott Dunlap, Bart Bryant and Monday qualifier Jean-Francois Remesy. His four birdies included a 45-foot putt on the par-4 10th. He holed a 6-footer on par-4 11th, and made four straight on Nos.
The most unusual play of the day came from Vaughn Taylor, who put his tee shot on the par-4 17th hole in the course’s signature lake.
While Leishman remains on track for his second victory in this event – his maiden and only win on the PGA Tour was here in 2012 – the story of the day among the Australians was Aaron Baddeley. On the senior tour, he tied for sixth in MS in April and last month in Endicott, N.Y.
Mike Grob (Arkansas Razorbacks) shot a 3-under 69.
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