Smith made a flying start to his second round, opening with an eagle at the first before adding a birdie at the second to immediately move to the top of the leaderboard. The 33-year-old maintained his momentum throughout the day and remained bogey-free for the tournament until a lone dropped shot at the par-four 14th.
Despite that blemish, Smith completed another impressive round to reach 10-under-par 130, giving him a one-shot advantage heading into the weekend.
Japan's Hideki Matsuyama matched Smith's 65 to move into a share of second place alongside Americans Brian Harman, who shot 66, Ryan Gerard (67) and Michael Thorbjornsen (65), all sitting one stroke off the pace.
A two-time winner on the DP World Tour, Smith is now firmly in contention for what would be his maiden PGA Tour title as he heads into the final two rounds with a narrow lead.
"it's going to be a new experience for us out here leading for the first time," said Smith. "So, yeah, I'm excited. Just going to stick to what I've been doing the last two days.
"Yeah, just see what happens, not going to force anything, not going to rush anything, just going to see what happens and enjoy it."
Matsuyama has been a model of consistency in 2026, making the cut in all 13 of his starts. The Japanese star is now chasing a 12th career PGA Tour title and his first victory since January 2025.
"First, I got to get it in the fairway. But once I'm in the fairway, I feel like I can score," said the former Masters champion. "It hasn't been that good recently but today it was, so everything came together today."
First-round leader J.J. Spaun is two shots off the lead, tied with Akshay Bhatia, Russell Henley, Brice Garnett and Alex Smalley. Smalley, who carded a 67 on Friday, remains firmly in the hunt for a maiden PGA Tour title just two weeks after unexpectedly holding the 54-hole lead at the PGA Championship.
South Korea's Tom Kim shot a six-under-par 64 to earn a share of the first-round lead at the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, after play was delayed for more than two hours due to dangerous weather conditions.
Wyndham Clark stormed home with a final-round 60 to claim victory at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson on Sunday.
Si Woo Kim has a two-stroke lead over the likes of major winners Scottie Scheffler and Wyndham Clark as the CJ Cup Byron Nelson heads into the final round on Sunday.
South Korea's Si Woo Kim fired a sensational 11-under-par 60 on Friday to storm into a commanding five-shot lead at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in McKinney, Texas.
