SHERWOOD PARK, Alberta – After setting a new course record at Northern Bear Golf Course in the first round, Michael Brennan extended his lead at the ATB Classic to four strokes and holds the 36-hole lead at 17-under after a bogey-free 6-under 66 on Friday. Derek Hitchner is in solo-second after a 7-under 65 on Friday.

Through 36 holes, Brennan has only made one bogey compared to two eagles and 14 pars and has hit 32 of 36 greens in regulation, which leads the field heading into the weekend. Brennan joins Jay Card III (KIA Open), as the only other player to hold a four-stroke lead after 36 holes.

In 13 starts on PGA TOUR Americas this season, Brennan, a Fortinet Ambassador, entered the week at No. 1 in the Fortinet Cup points list, with two wins in his last three starts. The Wake Forest alum became the first wire-to-wire champion of the season after his win at the BioSteel Championship. With a third win this season, Brennan would earn a three-victory promotion and secure exempt status on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2026.

In his last 14 starts, Brennan has made 13 cuts with 10 top-10 finishes. The second-year professional has not missed a cut since the 2025 Inter Rapidisimo Golf Championship and has only finished outside of the top-15 three times this season.

All players finished second-round play on Friday, with 61 players making the cut at 5-under. Third-round tee times are expected to run from 7:55 a.m. local time to 1:05 p.m. MT in twosomes off the No. 1 tee on Saturday.

Charting the leader

About Michael Brennan (first/17 under)  

• Shot a bogey-free 6-under 66 in the second round to extend his lead to four strokes.
• Carded an 11-under 61 in the first round, breaking the course record at Northern Bear Golf Course by two strokes.
• Won his second career PGA TOUR Americas event at the CRMC Championship presented by Northern Pacific Center at the age of 23 years, 6 months, and 23 days after overcoming a four-stroke deficit in the final round.
• Won his first title at the BioSteel Championship, where he coasted to a five-stroke win, the largest margin on PGA TOUR Americas since 2024. Became the first wire-to-wire winner of the season.
• Has the most top-10 finishes of the 2025 season with nine. Brennan has finished in the top-10 14 times in 23 career starts on PGA TOUR Americas, 12 of which have come in his last 17 starts dating back to the 2024 season.
• Finished as the No. 12 player in the PGA TOUR University Class of 2024 to earn PGA TOUR Americas membership.
• Tied for third in Wake Forest program history with Curtis Strange with eight individual titles: Brennan only trails Bill Haas (10), and Gary Hallberg (nine).
• Earned co-medalist honors at the 2024 ACC Championships and earned All-ACC honors four times during his time with the Demon Deacons.
• Won the Middle Atlantic Amateur Championship in 2017, 2018 and 2019.
• Won the 2019 Virginia State Amateur Championship.

Competition notes  

Course setup: Par 72 / 7,352 yards; R2 average: 70.963

Weather: Sunny with a high of 26 (79). Wind from the north at 5-13 km/h with gusts up to 24 km/h.   

• Fortinet Cup No. 1 Michael Brennan holds the 36-hole lead after carding a 6-under 66 in the second round: Brennan has held the 36-hole lead twice this season (BioSteel Championship).
• Brennan is the fourth player to hold a four-stroke lead after 36 holes since the start of the 2024 season. The three previous players all went on to win (Jay Card III/2025 KIA Open, Frederik Kjettrup/2024 CRMC Championship presented by Northern Pacific Center, Harry Hillier/2024 Inter Rapidisimo Golf Championship).
• Derek Hitchner moved into solo second after a 7-under 65 on Friday.
• 61 players made the cut at 5-under.
• Hole No. 15, the 579-yard par-5, played as the easiest hole at Northern Bear Golf Course on Friday (-0.710 strokes over par).
• Hole No. 13, the 200-yard par-3, played as the toughest hole at Northern Bear Golf Course on Friday (+0.303 strokes over par).