Five men sit atop the leaderboard at the halfway point of the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing & Finance at 5-under par on the treacherous Pete Dye Course at French Lick Golf Resort.

Neal Shipley shot a second-round 66 to join the club and eye up a possible Three-Victory Promotion for early access to the PGA TOUR with a win.

Shipley already has his card locked up regardless of his finish this week. For the other co-leaders, Barend Botha, Peter Kuest, Stuart Macdonald and Caleb VanArragon, only a win on Sunday will vault them into the top 20 and etch their name on a PGA TOUR card.

Charting the co-leaders (stats entering week)

Barend Botha (T1/-5)

• Birdies three of the final six holes (par-3 13th, par-5 14th and 18th) en route to 4-under 68
• Stands No. 54 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, with a victory this week being his only potential path to finishing in the top 20 and earn PGA TOUR membership
• Holds his first 36-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event (previous career-high 36-hole position: T5/2025 Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron/finished T63)
• Rookie who boasts three top-10s, highlighted by a T2 finish at the Utah Championship presented by Zions Bank and Intermountain Health, in 24 starts this season
• Earned Korn Ferry Tour membership for the first time with a No. 4 finish in the 2024 Fortinet Cup standings on PGA TOUR Americas
• Won twice on PGA TOUR Americas last season, earning victories at the 2024 BioSteel Championship and 2024 Commissionaires Ottawa Open
• Played four seasons at University of Toledo (2020-24), where he recorded four individual victories and was the 2023 and 2024 Mid-American Conference

Peter Kuest (T1/-5)

• Ties Neal Shipley for the low round of the day with a 6-under 66, highlighted by three consecutive birdies from Nos. 13-15
• Stands No. 44 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, with a victory this week being his only potential path to finishing in the top 20 and earning PGA TOUR membership
• Holds his second 36-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event (2024 Ascendant presented by Blue/finished T32)
• Began the 2025 season with conditional status, as he earned enough non-member FedExCup points to finish between Nos. 151-200 on the 2024 FedExCup Fall standings; he recorded top-10s in consecutive starts on the PGA TOUR last season (T10/Valero Texas Open as open qualifier, T9/Corales Puntacana Championship)
• In two previous seasons on the Korn Ferry Tour, finished No. 128 on the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour Points List and No. 135 on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Points List
• Earned Special Temporary Membership on the PGA TOUR during the 2022-23 season off the strength of top-25s at the 2023 CJ CUP Byron Nelson (T14), 2023 Rocket Mortgage Classic (T4), and 2023 John Deere Classic (T17); he failed to accrue enough non-member FedExCup points to finish in the top 125 of the 2022-23 FedExCup Fall standings, relegating him to conditional status on the Korn Ferry Tour for the 2024 season
• Turned professional in 2020 after four seasons at Brigham Young University (2016-20), where he earned 10 individual victories, including the 2017 West Coast Conference Championship, and was named the 2019 West Coast Conference Golfer of the Year

Stuart Macdonald (T1/-5)

• Cards 3-under 69 with four birdies and one bogey
• Stands No. 50 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, with a victory this week being his only potential path to finishing in the top 20 and earning PGA TOUR membership
• ·Holds his first 36-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event (previous career-high 36-hole position: T2/2025 Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation/finished 12th; T2/2021 Club Car Championship at The Landings Golf and Athletic Club/finished T28)
• Making third career start (and first since 2021) at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing and Finance
• Regained Korn Ferry Tour membership with a No. 10 finish on the 2024 Fortinet Cup Eligibility Standings on PGA TOUR Americas
• In three previous seasons, recorded Korn Ferry Tour Points List finishes of No. 181 (2018), No. 60 (2020-21), and No. 118 (2022)
• Boasts two PGA TOUR-sanctioned wins: 2023 Commissionaires Ottawa Open (PGA TOUR Canada), 2024 Diners Club Peru Open (PGA TOUR Americas)
• Turned professional in 2016 after four seasons at Purdue University (2012-16); he finished T31 at the 2014 Big Ten Conference Championship contested on The Pete Dye Course at French Lick Golf Resort

Neal Shipley (T1/-5)

• Ties Peter Kuest for the low round of the day with a 6-under 66, making eight birdies and two bogeys
• Makes one of three birdies in the second round at the par-4 sixth, which did not yield a birdie in the first round
• Holds first 36-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event (previous career-high 36-hole position: 2nd/2025 Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Hiland Dairy Foods/finished T7)
• Stands No. 3 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List and is one of 11 players declared #TOURBound and mathematically assured of a PGA TOUR card
• Two-time winner this season with comeback victories at the LECOM Suncoast Classic (overcame four-stroke 54-hole deficit, won in a playoff) and The Ascendant presented by Blue (overcame seven-stroke 54-hole deficit, won by one stroke)
• Bidding for the Three-Victory Promotion, which would grant him immediate eligibility for the remaining FedExCup Fall events on the PGA TOUR
• Turned professional in 2024 after three seasons at James Madison University (2019-22) and two seasons at Ohio State University (2022-24)
• Runner-up finisher at the 2023 U.S. Amateur Championship (won by two-time PGA TOUR winner Nick Dunlap)
• Earned low amateur honors at the 2024 Masters Tournament and 2024 U.S. Open, becoming the first player since Viktor Hovland (2019) to earn low amateur honors at both events in the same year

Caleb VanArragon (T1/-5)

• Birdies the par-5 18th to card 4-under 68 and earn a share of the 36-hole lead
• Holds first 36-hole lead/co-lead in a Korn Ferry Tour event (previous career-high 36-hole position: T4/three times this season – Veritex Bank Championship/finished 9th, NV5 Invitational/finished T7, Simmons Bank Open for the Snedeker Foundation/finished T4)
• Rookie who stands No. 59 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, with a victory this week being his only potential path to finishing in the top 20 and earning PGA TOUR membership
• Earned Korn Ferry Tour membership via 2024 PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry
• Played five seasons at Valparaiso University (2019-24), where he was a five-time All-Missouri Valley Conference selection and the 2024 MVC Golfer of the Year

Additional notes

• Marks the 10th time in Korn Ferry Tour history at least five players are tied for the 36-hole lead (last: seven players, 2021 Albertsons Boise Open presented by Chevron).
• The Korn Ferry Tour Championship presented by United Leasing and Finance is the 26th and final event of the 2025 season, and the top 20 players on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List upon conclusion of the final round will earn PGA TOUR membership for the 2026 season.
• Additionally, players ranked Nos. 21-50 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List upon conclusion of the final round will earn an exemption for Final Stage of 2025 PGA TOUR Q-School, where PGA TOUR cards will be awarded to the top five finishers.