Morikawa matched some peers with the second-best round of the day at Bay Hill to take pole position entering the final 18 holes

He began the day three shots behind 36-hole leader Shane Lowry, but the Irishman struggled at Bay Hill, opening the door for Morikawa and others to move up the leaderboard. Lowry sat at 8-under at the midway point but dropped two shots on his first two holes — a harbinger of things to come.

Ludvig Åberg was within striking distance at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but two shots into the water en route to a triple bogey on hole 8 sent his tournament score over par.