Aside from Murrieta’s Rickie Fowler, the crowded leaderboard at the U.S. Open lacks much name recognition.
Paul Casey, Tommy Fleetwood, Brooks Koepka and lefty Brian Harman all finished Friday at (-7) after 36 holes.
It’s the first time four golfers have shared the lead at the halfway point since the 1974 edition of the tournament.
Meanwhile, a handful of golfers with ties to San Diego are nipping on their heels with a legitimate chance to win their first major.
Torrey Pines high school graduate Jamie Lovemark (-6) carded a 69 to move up three strokes and within a shot of the lead.
The former USC Trojan who hails from Rancho Sante Fe was stronger on the back nine where he picked up four birdies.
Fowler (-6) started Friday with a one stroke lead and continued bogey-free on the front nine.
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He settled for three straight bogeys on the 11th, 12th and 13th holes before steadying the ship and saving par on his last five holes.
SDSU product Xander Schauffele gave one stroke back in the second round but still sits pretty at (-5).
The 23-year-old is tied with four other golfers for 8th place.
Poway’s Charley Hoffman also had a good day at the office.
Hoffman improved to (-4) after turning in a 70 for the second straight day.
He is within striking distance – just three shots behind the leading quartet.
Torey Pines graduate Pat Perez however did not fare as well at Erin Hills.
Perez missed the cut as did former SDSU golfer Scott Piercy.
Even more surprising, the top three ranked golfers in the world – defending U.S. Open champion Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Jason Day – all failed to make it to the weekend after subpar showings in the first two rounds.
It’s the first time the top trio in the world rankings all missed the cut in a major.
