Charley Hoffman and Rico Hoey both shot a 9-under 63 on the Nicklaus Tournament Course to share the lead Friday after two rounds at The American Express.

The win earned the 31-year-old Straka his first title since the 2023 John Deere Classic and the $1,584,000 first-place check, the largest of his career.

Straka’s round at La Quinta in many ways was the reverse of what might have been expected. Playing the back nine first, Straka made six birdies on the way to a 30, the kind of score generally associated with the front nine at the course that opened in 1959.