PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Arkansas played its last six holes at 7-under, had all five of its counting scores under par and shot the second-lowest round of the day, a 13-under-par 347, to rocket up the leaderboard into second place with a 36-hole score of -9 (711) at the Carmel Cup, played at Spyglass Hill Golf Course.
Day one leader Vanderbilt extended its lead after carding a score of 14-under-par and leads the Razorbacks by 13 strokes with a two-day total of 698 (-22). Arkansas climbed from sixth to second with its impressive day Saturday and leads defending national champion and top-ranked Oklahoma State by two strokes and fourth-place Oklahoma by six.
John Daly II led the Razorbacks on Saturday and is one of four Hogs tied for 14th with a total of 143 (-1) after two days.
Daly tied his career-best score in relation to par with a 5-under round. He moved up 22 spots with his 67 on Saturday. The senior started fast with birdies on holes 4 and 5 and made the turn at 2-under. He dropped a shot on the par-4 10th but bounced back with birdies on 11, 13, 14 and 17.
Niilo Maki-Petaja jumped 15 places to 14th. He posted a 3-under 69. The junior opened with pars on the first four holes, then bogeyed the par-3, 5th. Maki-Petaja answered with a birdie on the sixth hole and played the back nine at 3-under with birdies on holes 11, 14, and 16.
Cam Smith and Thomas Curry each carded rounds of 70 and improved nine spots to 14th. Both players were 1-over in round one and are 1-under after 36 holes thanks to their 2-under-par rounds Saturday.
Erich Fortlage continued to lead the Razorbacks overall. He fired a 1-under-par 71 for the second-straight day and sits in ninth place with a two-day total of 142 (-2).
Gerardo Gomez is tied for 28th with rounds of 73-74, a 3-over 147.
The third and final round is set for Sunday.
Carmel Cup
Aug. 29-31, 2025
Host: Texas Tech
Spyglass Hill Golf Course
Pebble Beach, Calif.
Par 72 — 6,975 yards
Results Thru Rd2
1 #12 Vanderbilt 352-346=698 / -22
2 #34 Arkansas 364-347=711 / -9
3 #1 Oklahoma State 361-352=713 / -7
4 #8 Oklahoma 363-354=717 / -3
5 #38 TCU 358-366=724 / +4
6 #23 Georgia 367-361=728 / +8
7 #15 Texas Tech 365-366=731 / +11
8 #42 Mississippi State 363-370=733 / +13
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