Scottie Scheffler remains a prominent figure in the sport.
The American Express, Round Two Leaderboard:
–17 S Scheffler (US), B Brown (US); -16 S-Woo Kim (Kor); -15 M McCarty (US), S-Hyeon Kim (Kor); –14 N Echavarria (Col), R Fowler (US), E Cole (US), W Clark (US)
Selected others: -10 A Scott (Aus); -9 S Power (Irl); J Rose (Eng); R MacIntyre (Sco); J Smith (Eng); -8 M Fitzpatrick (Eng), M Wallace (Eng); -7 J Parry (Eng)
Blades Brown, the emerging talent, delivered a remarkable 12-under 60, tying for the lead with world number one Scottie Scheffler after the second round of the American Express in California.
The 18-year-old’s impressive round included 10 birdies and an eagle, positioning him at 17 under alongside his American counterpart.
Scheffler, making his first PGA Tour appearance of the season, followed up his opening round of 63 with an eight-under 64.
The 29-year-old secured three birdies on the front nine in La Quinta, followed by an additional five, maintaining a second consecutive bogey-free round.
Scheffler is yet to secure a victory at the American Express tournament, which offers a substantial prize of £1,236,000 ($1.656m) for the champion.
South Korea’s Si-Woo Kim trails the leaders by a single stroke after a round of 65 placed him at 16 under, with fellow countryman Seong-Hyeon Kim and American Matt McCarty positioned a further shot behind.