Mathew Goggin barely made it into the Furyk & Friends field, but he wasted no time rewriting the script. The 52-year-old from Tasmania, who punched his ticket through a tough open qualifier, ripped off a 10-under 62 on Saturday at Hammock Beach Ocean Course. That number set a new tournament record and put him alone at the top heading into Sunday.
Goggin's 62 was not only a tournament record for 18 holes, but also his personal best on the PGA Tour Champions, surpassing his previous low of 65 at the DICK'S Open earlier in 2026.
Qualifier's Edge and High Stakes
Goggin's route to the top cut against the grain. Out of nearly 60 players in the open qualifier, only three advanced. The official PGA Tour Champions review shows Goggin shot 67 at Dye's Valley, TPC Sawgrass, to grab one of those rare spots. Just 15 players have ever won a senior event after qualifying this way, with Tommy Gainey doing it last year at this same tournament. This marks Goggin's seventh start of 2026, and he's had to grind through qualifying six times-falling short on several attempts.
After two rounds, Goggin led with a 128 total (66-62), setting a new 36-hole tournament record and surpassing the previous mark of 132 set by Matt Gogel in 2025.
Leaderboard Pressure and Final Round Dynamics
Pampling isn't the only threat. Vaughn Taylor and Michael Wright are two shots back at 13 under. Ryan Armour, Paul Goydos, and Richard Green sit at 12 under. Steven Alker, who's been on a tear with three wins and a runner-up in his last four starts, lurks at 11 under. With tee times bumped up again for weather, the final round shapes up as a shootout where double digits under par may be the bar for victory.
This is the first year Furyk & Friends has landed at Hammock Beach Ocean Course, a par-72 stretching 7,149 yards. Previous editions ran at Timuquana Country Club in Jacksonville, as detailed in a PGA Tour event preview. The purse stands at $2.2 million, raising the stakes for everyone in the hunt.
