Canada’s Nick Taylor is firmly in the mix at The American Express

LA QUINTA, Calif. – Charley Hoffman knows his time on the PGA Tour is running out. He can feel every bit of his 48 years every time his troublesome back acts up, and he knows that the recent reduction in tour cards will end most players’ careers well before they reach his age.

Hoffman isn’t done swinging yet, though.

Back home in Southern California, he fought his way into a share of the lead Friday in The American Express, a tournament he won 18 years ago — and he’s determined to keep fighting until his time runs out.

“When I’m healthy, the weather’s warm, I feel like I can beat anybody in the world,” Hoffman said with a smile. “When it’s cold and my back doesn’t feel good, I don’t think I can beat anyone in the world.”

Hoffman and Rico Hoey both shot nine-under 63 on the Nicklaus Tournament Course to share the lead after two rounds in the Coachella Valley desert. Nick Taylor (66) of Abbotsford, BC, was three shots off the pace after shooting seven under in the first round.

Hoffman and Hoey were at 16-under 128 midway through this three-course tournament, though both Southern California natives have yet to play PGA West’s tougher Pete Day Stadium Course. They were one shot ahead of Justin Lower, Mark Hubbard and Sepp Straka. Jason Day and JJ Spaun were 14 under.

Hoffman is seeking his fifth victory while playing in the 517th event of his tour career. The San Diego native played his first PGA Tour event at Torrey Pines as a 17-year-old amateur, but didn’t secure his tour card until 2006, several years after graduating from UNLV.

Hoffman won his first PGA Tour title at this event back in 2007, holding off John Rollins in a playoff on a windy weekend with sub-freezing temperatures. It was a celebrity pro-am known as the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic back then, a West Coast landmark often played by Hollywood stars and US presidents.

Hoffman hasn’t won since 2016, but he’s doing well after years of back problems, most notably two fragmented discs three years ago. He got back into contention Friday with an eventful second round of two bogeys and two eagles, and he’s thankful to be healthy enough to play with the aggression needed to contend with the younger long-hitters in this event.

“I have a great chiropractor at home, I have a great golf coach (and a) great team that I’ve built,” Hoffman said. “Don’t push it too hard in training anymore. Don’t play too many events in a row. I probably spend more time in the gym staying healthy and recovering than I do working on golf anymore because … this old dog comes probably not learning any new shots, but if I’m healthy I can still hit the good ones.”

Hoffman knows he could have already taken a step back and spent less time away from his wife and two daughters — an absence he calls the hardest part of his job. The whole family is gathered in Palm Springs this week, with everyone else participating in equestrian events in nearby Thermal, California.

“So they’re spending money and I’m trying to make money,” he said with a laugh.

But Hoffman isn’t ready to become a full-time horse sire or to look forward to the PGA Tour Champions in less than two years. He is determined to make the most of his remaining time in the spotlight.

“The competition is fun,” Hoffman said. “I like walking down the fairways and guys say, ‘How old are you?’ (I say) ‘I’m 48,’ and they give you a look like, what, you’re 48 out here and still playing? And in this day and age where we’re going up to 100 players now, guys are playing at 48 years on the PGA Tour, past. I don’t think you’re going to see that much anymore on the PGA Tour. But I’m going to try to fight out here as long as I can.”

Rickie Fowler came into contention with 10 birdies and a second-round 62 on Nicklaus, which moved him even with Justin Thomas and Taylor, the Sony Open champion, at 13 under 131. Patrick Cantlay, Will Zalatoris and Doug Ghim were 12 under.

First-round leader JT Poston plummeted down the leaderboard with a four-over 76 on the Stadium Course.

Hoey, who grew up 80 miles away in Rancho Cucamonga and starred at the University of Southern California, is chasing his first victory in his second full year on the PGA Tour. He has been playing courses around Palm Springs since he was five years old, and Nicklaus is one of his favorites.

“I played a lot of junior events out here, so it just feels like home,” Hoey said. “It’s great. The weather is great so we don’t really have a lot of rough conditions with the wind and stuff. Made it a lot easier to score. … I’m still kind of starstruck with a lot of those guys, Hoffman, Cantlay, Rickie and what not. For me, it’s really cool to just put my name out there and just keep up with them, so that’s all I try to do.”

Mackenzie Hughes (68) of Dundas, Ont., was at six-under 138, one shot ahead of Adam Hadwin (70) of Abbotsford, BC Adam Svensson (71) of Surrey, BC, was at two-under 142 and Ben Silverman (72) from Thornhill, Ont., was tied for 144th.

– With files from Sportsnet Staff