Steve

LeBrun

After playing the first five holes in 1-over, he found the equalizer at the par-4 seventh. He then played the final 11 holes with pars with the exception of a birdie he rattled home on the par-5 17th. Though he only split six (of 14) fairways and landed 10 GIR, he limited the total putts to 27 for the round. He will enter the final round at 7-over 217.

The 34-year-old converted eight birdies on PGA West’s Stadium Course, but only one on the set of four par 5s. He’s 0-for-3 at the final stage of Q School (2003, 2008, 2011) and finished 56th on the Web.com Tour money list this year. Notables lurking after 18 holes at PGA West include Kris Blanks (65), Alexandre Rocha (65), Edward Loar (65), Robert Karlsson (66), Richard H. Lee (66), Erik Compton (67), Morgan Hoffmann (67) and Lee Williams (67). Among the notables that failed to break par today include: 73--Patrick Cantlay; Tim Petrovic; Brian Stuard; Cliff Kresge; Steven Bowditch; Tag Ridings; Todd Demsey ... 74--Arjun Atwal; Kelly Kraft; Alex Prugh; Adam Hadwin; Matt Hill ... 75--D.J. Trahan; Paul Stankowski; Kevin Tway ... 78--Scott Brown.

LeBrun is coming off back-to-back missed cuts, but before that he had a four-tournament run that included three top 25s. When everything is added up, he sits 147th in the FedExCup standing, meaning there’s plenty of work to do if he is to earn a seat at the Playoff table and retain the card he earned at Q School.

The rookie was the fifth alternate when the field was released on Friday afternoon, but he was given the last of four sponsor exemptions available today. He needs a big week to prevent plummeting in the reshuffle. In his first five events, he’s cashed only once and that was for a T84 at Torrey Pines.

The rookie got his bearings, as evident by a second-round 3-under-par 67 to pull to even-par 140, but it wasn’t enough to secure a weekend tee time at Waialae. Having earned his TOUR card in the California desert just weeks ago, a return trip could be just what the doctor ordered. Worth noting, he was 4-over through his first eight holes at Sony before finishing his final 28 holes in 4-under. That could point to a case of front-nine jitters in his first TOUR start as a member.

LeBrun was the fourth alternate when the field was released on Friday afternoon, and then rose to first after three withdrawals early on Monday. He gained entry on a sponsor exemption. The rookie is coming off a T84 at the Farmers Insurance Open, his first payday in three starts this season.

LeBrun limped out of the gates and was 2-over through 12 holes. That makes sense, given he’s only made two cuts on the PGA TOUR and never found a top 25. That he bounced back to birdie four of his final six, and each of his final three, holes is impressive. He will have a chance to turn his first top 25 into his first win in Sunday’s final round at Trump International Golf Club-Puerto Rico.

Save a bogey-5 at the seventh hole today, LeBrun put on a clinic at Trump International Golf Club-Puerto Rico. After an eagle-3 at 2, he added six birdies to reach the midpoint in 12-under 132, two swings back of the 36-hole clubhouse lead.

The 2012 Q School grad and 2013 PGA TOUR rookie went 1-for-6 on the West Coast Swing with a T84 at the Farmers Insurance Open to plummet in the graduate reshuffle. As a result, Puerto Rico very well could be his only start on the Florida Swing. He’s made the most of it thus far, holing six birdies against one bogey. LeBrun is two strokes back of the clubhouse co-leaders.

LeBrun was the first alternate when the field was released on Friday afternoon. He gained entry due to two withdrawals. The rookie is 3-for-8 this season, but has played just twice since the conclusion of the West Coast Swing due to plummeting in the reshuffle.