Bradley’s 64 leads FedEx finale by 2

Associated Press

ATLANTA

Keegan Bradley and Jason Dufner atop the leaderboard in Atlanta should sound familiar.

Only this was the FedEx Cup finale, not the final major of the year.

And they were on East Lake, not 40 minutes up the road at Atlanta Athletic Club.

Bradley, who won the PGA Championship last month in a playoff over Dufner, ran off four birdies on the back nine Thursday for a 6-under 64 to build a two-shot lead in the Tour Championship.

Dufner was surprisingly crooked off the tee, yet still managed a 66 and was tied for second along with Chez Reavie and Luke Donald, the No. 1 player in the world and one of five players in prime position to win the $10 million FedEx Cup bonus.

Bradley and Dufner will be in the last group today, and it was impossible to ignore the coincidence.

“Yeah, I don’t think there’s any big surprise,” Bradley said. “He likes this grass, too. He likes these courses, and I hope I get to play with him tomorrow. I think that would be a lot of fun.”

It would bring back great memories for Bradley, a 26-year-old rookie. Not so much for Dufner, who had a four-shot lead with three holes to play until he made three straight bogeys and wound up losing in a three-hole playoff.

“Maybe he’s having some of the same feelings — very comfortable on this type of golf course ... with the conditions maybe a little more severe at Atlanta Athletic Club off the tee,” Dufner said. “But he’s having a good day. Hopefully, we’ll be paired tomorrow. That will be a little interesting, I guess. Maybe some thoughts here or there will come back and forth.”

The Tour Championship is more about memories, however.

Along with this being the end of the FedEx Cup, there’s another cup on Bradley’s mind. He is not a lock to be a captain’s pick for the Presidents Cup, despite having won twice this year, including a major. U.S. captain Fred Couples has said he would consider the Tour Championship as one last audition.

Bradley could not have asked for a better start.