But Davis got the best of them in Friday's round, firing a 66 to get to 10 under, just three strokes off the lead. He's found his game at a spot where he won his lone PGA Tour event. He hasn't finished better than 38th since he was T12 at the Masters in April.

"It was a lot of fun," said Davis, who bogeyed his first hole Friday then made seven birdies coming in. "I can't say I've had a lot of people watching my first and second rounds lately, so it was nice to be in that environment.

"It felt like a weekend for me being in contention."

Zalatoris shot 1-under 71, done in by double-bogey at the par-5 14th, and was at 7 under, while Fowler, looking to be the first repeat winner at the Rocket, stumbled to a par-72 and was at 6 under.

Chips & divots

— Perhaps call it the Greg Kampe effect. Oakland's men's basketball coach has had a pretty good year (eh, Kentucky?), and maybe some of that rubbed off on his partners from Wednesday's pro-am at Detroit Golf Club. His front-nine partner, Joel Dahmen, shot a second-round 68 and was at 10 under, three shots off the lead, while Kampe's back-nine partner, Jake Knapp, shot a 65 and was at 9 under.

— Nick Bienz, the Indianapolis golf pro who went viral when he downed three beers at Monday's qualifier, then went out and survived an eight-hole playoff, missed the cut in his PGA Tour debut at 6 over. He still made a profit on the weekend, thanks to a sponsorship from his employer, Golf Galaxy, and dozens of donations through Venmo.

— Merritt (11 under) and Chris Kirk (7 under) are tied with the most top-25 finishes at the Rocket, with four apiece. Merritt caught fire again Friday, with a second-round 64 that still included two bogeys. That's not something you see every day. "Maybe at home," he quipped.

— Two amateurs made the cut, including Luke Clanton, 20, who plays at Florida State and was at 7 under through his second round, following a Friday 68. Ben James, 21, a Connecticut resident who plays golf at Virginia, made it right on the number, at 4 under, after posting consecutive 70s.

— Tee times are being moved up for the third round Saturday, to 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., in anticipation of bad weather. There will be threesomes, off both tees, and the course won't open until 10 a.m. If the course has to be evacuated because of weather, ticketed fans will be allowed re-entry.

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