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Wind, wind and more wind has been the story of the first two days of the 2022 Scottish Open as competitors have struggled to maintain their cool amid the difficult conditions at The Renaissance Club. After a brutal wave advantage on Thursday saw those players off in the morning hours receive nearly a three-stroke edge, the forecast smoothed out on Friday as the wind remained steady throughout the day.

Hoping to back up his scorching hot 9-under 61 was overnight leader Cameron Tringale. Given the way in which The Renaissance Club was playing in the second round, any score in the 60s would have been a solid day's work, let alone a round in the low 60s. As you could imagine, the 34-year-old retreated to the pack with a 2-over 72 yet still maintains his lead heading into the weekend in North Berwick, Scotland.

While it is a substantial three-stroke margin, there are a number of quality candidates more than capable of overtaking Tringale in the final 36 holes. U.S Open winner Matt Fitzpatrick catapulted himself back into contention with a 4-under 67, while Travelers Championship winner Xander Schauffele did one better than the Englishman and signed for the round of the day as both sit in a tie for fourth at 3 under. 

The leader

1. Cameron Tringale (-7): There was a point in this tournament where Tringale saw his lead balloon to six strokes as shades of J.T. Poston at the John Deere Classic and Schauffele at the Travelers Championship came to mind. Reaching 11 under for the week after birdies on the par-4 11th and par-3 12th -- his second and third holes of the day -- Tringale eventually slipped up as his tee to green was far less impressive than yesterday.

Making his first bogey of the week on the fifth hole of his second round, Tringale began to slide as he would go on to to make four bogeys in a row around the turn before settling down on the inward half.

Tringale holds the unenviable title of the player on the PGA Tour with the most starts without a victory. Clocking in north of 300 starts, one has to wonder if it hasn't happened by now, will a trip to the winner's circle ever occur? Given the names in the chasing pack, the difficulties of the winds over the weekend and the magnitude of this tournament, if he does in fact find a way to raise the Scottish Open trophy on Sunday, Tringale will have most certainly earned it.

Other contenders

T2. Gary Woodland and Doug Ghim (-4)

T4. Matt Fitzpatrick, Xander Schauffele, Kurt Kitayama and Jordan Smith (-3)

T8. Joaquin Niemann, Rasmus Hojgaard, Rickie Fowler, Tyrrell Hatton and Rafa Cabrera Bello (-2)

This has been a tournament favoring those coming from behind over the weekend. Aaron Rai was eight strokes back in 2020 and Min Woo Lee was six adrift at the halfway point last year. With this being the case, players like Patrick Cantlay, Justin Rose and Jordan Spieth are still in with a chance to win.

However, it is nice to see Rickie Fowler play some solid golf after carding back-to-back rounds of 69. The winner of the Scottish Open in 2015 -- the last time the Open was at St. Andrews -- Fowler's links record continues to impress, specifically in this tournament where his results read: CUT, T6, T9, WIN, T8. 

Rick Gehman and Mark Immelman recap Friday's action at the Scottish Open. Follow & listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Big names limping into the Open

At the beginning of the tournament, 14 of the top 15 players in the world were in attendance at the Scottish Open. Just 48 hours later, only seven of such competitors remain as they were chewed up and spit out by The Renaissance Club. Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Viktor Hovland, Hideki Matsuyama, Will Zalatoris and Billy Horschel are the unlikely crop of players who will be making the trip to St. Andrews early.

Links golf has a way of evening the playing field, but this is nevertheless surprising. Perhaps this will be beneficial for some as they will take to the Old Course and get their feet underneath them for the final major championship of the season. Only time will tell.

Drinks and cars courtesy of Jordan Smith

The 29-year-old Englishman gave the Scottish crowd plenty to cheer about when he made an ace on the par-3 17th. While his bar tab may read like a CVS receipt tonight, he will take pleasure in knowing he won not only himself, but also his caddie, a brand new car courtesy of Genesis.

To make matters even better, Smith is firmly in contention heading into the weekend at The Renaissance Club at 3 under. Coming into the week off five straight top-25 finishes, he has continued to strike the ball beautifully and has a chance to nab his first DP World Tour victory since 2017.

2022 Scottish Open updated odds and picks

Odds via Caesars Sportsbook

  • Cameron Tringale: 4-1
  • Matt Fitzpatrick: 9/2
  • Xander Schauffele: 9/2
  • Gary Woodland: 9-1
  • Joaquin Niemann: 14-1
  • Tyrrell Hatton: 16-1
  • Jordan Smith: 18-1
  • Jon Rahm: 18-1
  • Patrick Cantlay: 28-1
  • Doug Ghim: 28-1
  • Kurt Kitayama: 28-1

The Renaissance Club, as mentioned, has had a way of catering to those a bit out of touch with the lead at the halfway mark. With the forecast tomorrow mirroring that of the first two days, those off in the early hours will once again be given a considerable advantage compared to those with late tee times. Because of this, I would expect to see plenty of movement on the leaderboard and a few players capable of leapfrogging the competition include: Justin Rose (65-1), Branden Grace (150-1) and Max Homa (200-1). This task becomes much more manageable if Tringale is to stumble -- which I suspect he will -- as those players in second are only at 4 under.