By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

CROMWELL, Conn. -- Patrick Cantlay is on the golf course and still in the lead despite a bogey on the second hole ( click here to follow live with Shot Tracker ), but he now has company with Shane Bertsch and Johnson Wagner also at 12 under.

There’s a group of seven players within two strokes of them, too, including Bo Van Pelt, who just moved to 11 under with a birdie on the fourth hole. Among the group at 10 under are Spencer Levin and Paul Stankowski, both 5 under through 11 and nine holes, respectively.

In other words, there’s plenty of red out there. All week the course has played  under par and that continues here in the third round with a scoring average of 67.837 on the par-70 layout.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

CROMWELL, Conn. -- There are all sorts of numbers and records surrounding Patrick Cantlay’s second-round performance. Here’s a look at some of them as he gets set to tee off in just over an hour from now:

-- Cantlay will be 19 years, three months and nine days old on Sunday, which would make him the youngest winner in PGA TOUR history. That current distinction is held by Johnny McDermott, who won the 1911 U.S. Open at the age of 19 years, 10 months and 14 days.

-- Cantlay earned low amateur honors at last week’s U.S. Open (T21) – his first career start on the PGA TOUR.

-- Jim Grant’s tie for second in 1964 is the best finish by an amateur at the Travelers Championship.

-- An amateur has led twice previously at the Travelers Championship. In 1961, amateur Robert Allen shared the first-round lead with Bob Goetz and eventually finished 62 ^nd. In 1953, amateur Frank Stranahan shared the third-round lead with Jim Ferrier and Bob Toski before finishing in a tie for seventh.

-- Should he win on Sunday, Cantlay would have 60 days to accept membership on the TOUR, which would run until the end of the 2013 season. If that deadline passes, he could then join the TOUR at the end of the 2011 season (and have two years remaining) or at the end of the 2012 season (and have one year remaining).

-- Even without membership on TOUR, a win would gain Cantlay entrance into the following events in 2011: AT&T National (currently in the field via a sponsor’s exemption) and the PGA Championship. He would then have a spot in the following events in 2012: Hyundai Tournament of Champions, Bob Hope Classic, Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard, the Masters, RBC Heritage, THE PLAYERS Championship, Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial and the Memorial tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. A non-member is allowed 12 starts in a season, with a maximum of seven sponsor’s exemptions among that total.

-- Cantlay’s 13-under 127 is currently the second-best first 36-hole score on TOUR this season, behind only David Toms’ 124 at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial.

-- Should an amateur win on the TOUR, first-place FedExCup points are eliminated and first-place money goes to the runner-up.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

CROMWELL, Conn. -- The third round is under way at TPC River Highlands, where players are being sent off both tees in threesomes. The final group of the day -- Patrick Cantlay, Johnson Wagner and Nick Watney -- will tee off at 1:45 p.m. ET.

For Cantlay, the 19-year-old amateur who just finished his freshman year at UCLA, it will obviously be the first time he’s carried a lead into the weekend on the PGA TOUR in what is just his second start out here.

He  turned plenty of heads with his second-round 60 -- a course record -- and now will try to build on that. Given the soft conditions, he’ll need to.

“He knows how to look at a golf hole and what an architect is trying to do,” Cantlay’s college coach, Derek Freeman said. “It’s amazing because I’ve never coached a kid that has that ability at that age.”

Freeman, who is here this week, talked to Cantlay Friday night after the round and told him to enjoy what was a special day and to keep things simple.

Cantlay obliged, having a low key dinner last night before calling it a night.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

CROMWELL, Conn. -- The second round was finally completed Saturday morning and while amateur Patrick Cantlay still leads, he’s up by just one now after Johnson Wagner finished off a 63 to get to 12 under at the halfway mark.

“The putter is finally working,” Wagner said. “I'm striking the ball well and making a lot of 10-footers and giving myself a lot of chances."

“The course is playing great for all the rain we've had. The greens are perfect. A little soft, so it's going to be a shootout. But I like where I'm at.”

Another spot down from that are Nick Watney and Shane Bertsch, who are both 10 under after shooting 65 and 63, respectively, in the second round.

The third round will begin at 11:45 a.m. with players going off in threesomes off both sets of tees.

A total of 74 players made the cut, which was at 4 under.

Among those who missed the cut? Geoff Ogilvy, Jim Furyk, Anthony Kim, Lucas Glover and Boo Weekley.

CROMWELL, Conn. -- Fresh off his low amateur honors at the U.S. Open, Patrick Cantlay is in the lead at the Travelers Championship after a course record 10-under 60 to get to 13 under and four shots clear of his closest competitor at TPC River Highlands.

On an ideal day for scoring with soft conditions, no wind and players using lift, clean and place, Cantlay made eight birdies and an eagle Friday to break a record previously held by five others. it also matched the tournament record.

It’s the 24th time in PGA TOUR history that a player has shot 60 but it’s the first time an amateur has ever gone that low in a TOUR event.

"I didn't know that no amateur had ever shot a 60. So that wasn't really in my brain. I knew where I was and I knew I needed to make eagle on 18 for 59. But you know, it's tough to hole it from 152," Cantlay said. 

The last amateur to win on TOUR was Phil Mickelson in 1991.

Cantlay, however, has said he won’t turn pro until after he receives his degree from UCLA.

"I'm not thinking about that right now. So I'm going to try and take care of business this week and then see what's going on," Cantlay said. "But I'm going to stay amateur definitely for the Walker Cup, and my plans are to stay amateur, you know, until I finish college."

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

CROMWELL, Conn. -- Amateur Patrick Cantlay just eagled the par-5 13th to take the lead at 10 under here at TPC River Highlands.

No amateur has ever won this event -- Jim Grant tied for second in 1964 -- but Cantlay, who just finished his freshman year at UCLA, is in front by one after his second eagle of the day on the par-5 hole. (He didn’t get to tee off on Thursday).

The eagle also moves Cantlay to 7 under on his round and within striking distance of the course record, a 9-under 61.

The last amateur to win on the PGA TOUR was Phil Mickelson when he won the 1991 Northern Telecom Open.

Obviously, there is a lot of golf to be played at the Travelers Championship. Even so, it’s interesting to look at where a potential Patrick Cantlay victory would sit in the annuals of the PGA TOUR.

The 19-year-old Cantlay, who broke the course record Friday at TPC River Highlands, just completed his freshman year at UCLA. The last amateur to win on the PGA TOUR was Phil Mickelson at the 1991 Northern Telecom Open.

The youngest winner since 1900 on the PGA TOUR is Johnny McDermott, who was 19 years, 10 months and 14 days old when he captured the 1911 U.S. Open title. Cantlay will be 19 years, 3 months and 9 days old on Sunday.

The youngest winner ever is Tom Morris Jr., who won the 1868 British Open at the age of 17 years, 5 months and 8 days. He repeated in 1869 (18-4-27) and 1870 (19-4-26)

The most recent amateur winners on the PGA TOUR are:

The youngest winners since 1900 are:

* Both Evans and Ouimet were amateurs when they won.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

CROMWELL, Conn. -- After finishing as the low amateur at the U.S. Open, where he tied for 21st, Patrick Cantlay is tied for the lead at the moment with Vaughn Taylor at 8 under.

Cantlay, who just completed his freshman year at UCLA, has said that he has no plans to turn pro before he gets his degree but if he keeps playing like this you have to wonder if he’ll be able to resist temptation.

The 19-year-old just made the turn in 30 at TPC River Highlands, where he birdied four of his final five holes on the front nine. Even though they’re playing lift, clean and place, his accuracy has been impressive with 23 of 27 greens in regulation -- third best in the field. He’s also putted well with 43 putts through 27 holes.

The leaderboard remains crowded, however, with four players just one shot back and 10 more players two back. The current cut is 2 under, which means just six shots separate the cut and the lead.

Trotman/Getty Images

Patrick Cantlay enters the Travelers Championship coming off low amateur honors at the U.S. Open.

By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

CROMWELL, Conn. -- Patrick Cantlay is learning what it’s like to be a professional golfer, even if he isn’t one just yet.

Cantlay, who just finished his freshman year at UCLA, got a sponsor invite to play in this year’s Travelers Championship before he had qualified for the U.S. Open. He then made it into the field at Congressional and consequently will be playing for a fourth straight week this week after also playing in the NCAA tournament and then the Palmer Cup.

The result? One tired 19-year-old.

“I guess U.S. Opens do that to you,” said the NCAA’s top-ranked player, who plans to stay in school until he earns his degree in three years. “I’m still tired today a little bit.”

And with good reason.

In the span of two weeks, Cantlay played in the NCAA finals in Oklahoma, a U.S. Open sectional qualifier in Ohio, the Palmer Cup in Connecticut and then the U.S. Open.

During that span he also received the Jack Nicklaus Award as college player of the year. He then went on to be the low amateur at the U.S. Open, where he tied for 21st. His second-round 67 was the fifth-lowest score ever recorded in the U.S. Open by an amateur.

Yet for all of Cantlay’s success -- or the potential payoff that comes with turning pro -- he says he has no plans to turn pro anytime soon.

“I just think that it’s important to get a degree because you never know what’s going to happen,” Cantlay said. “Playing amateur golf is really fun and I’d love to play on a couple Walker Cup teams. I’ve heard that’s just fantastic.

“There’s no rush for me to turn pro. And I can get better and get physically better, mentally better and at the same time earn a degree.”

That’s not to say Cantlay isn’t enjoying playing at the PGA TOUR level.

Asked what he learned last week playing in the U.S. Open, he said, “I learned that I really like playing in that atmosphere. It was a lot of fun, probably the most fun I’ve ever had playing golf.”

Speaking of playing golf, Cantlay will finally get a break after the Travelers. He plans to take the next two weeks off before playing the Southern California Amateur near his home in L.A. He’ll also play in the Nationwide Tour’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital Invitational and he hopes in the Walker Cup before returning to school.

By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM

BETHESDA, Md. -- It may not be as compelling as the battle at the top of the leaderboard, but there's a close race for low amateur honors at the U.S. Open.

And given the youth movement in golf right now, you would be wise to pay close attention to these players. Who knows? You may be seeing them at a PGA TOUR event somewhere soon.

Patrick Cantlay, who just completed his freshman season -- yes, that's freshman season -- at UCLA, currently heads the group. Cantlay, who won the Jack Nicklaus Award as the nation's top collegian, shot 70 on Saturday and is 1 under for 54 holes.

Russell Henley, who was the co-low amateur last year at Pebble Beach, is one shot back at even par after a 71 in the third round. Henley, who just completed his eligibility at Georgia, actually won a Nationwide Tour event on his home course earlier this year. He opted to remain an amateur, though, in hopes of matching the Walker Cup team.

The third amateur, Brad Benjamin, had rough day on Saturday and shot 80. The 24-year-old Benjamin played collegiately at Memphis and won the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 2009.