Gulfport, MS – Matt Short of Hudson, NC has never feared the low number in golf. The former Lees-McRae golfer is two weeks removed from setting a course-record 58 at his home club of Mimosa Hills Country Club in Morganton, NC, which was the longtime home of famed amateur Billy Joe Patton, who competed in the Walker Cup five times and finished third in the 1954 Masters Tournament as an amateur.

On Thursday afternoon at eGolf’s $225,000 Island View Casino Championship, Short rebounded from a slow start to close in rapid fashion, birdieing six of his final 10 holes – including two chip-ins on his final four – en route to a second-round 65 and the outright lead at 15-under par.

Short’s week at host Windance Country Club began with a first-round 64 and a share of the day one lead alongside five other players. Early on during Thursday’s second round, the 30-year-old struggled, bogeying the par-3 second and failing to convert an easy up-and-down on the par-5 third to sit at 1-over par through three holes.

“I chunked a little chip on three and then had a really good up-and-down on five, and that kind of settled me down and got my day going,” said Short, referencing a par save on the watery par-4.

Birdies on Nos. 6 and 9 put Short at 1-under on the turn and 9-under for the week, at the time a distant five shots off the clubhouse lead.

At that point, Matt Short pulled off classic Matt Short.

A pair of 15-foot birdie tries on 10 and 11 found the bottom of the cup, pushing Short even further into the red at 3-under par.

A near-miss eagle chip-in on 12 led to a fourth straight birdie, while a follow-up birdie on the par-4 13th gave him five straight birdies and a 6-under-par tally on the day.

“After that, it was kind of like playing on house money. I was just going through the motions there and they just kept going in,” said Short after his round.

On the par-3 15th, Short’s “worst shot of the week” caught up on a bank, and led to an unlikely chip-in birdie that moved him into a share of the lead at 14-under par.

Three holes later, he chipped in again.

After lacing a tee shot on the par-4 18th, Short pulled a wedge from 80 yards just off the green, pin high. For one last surprise, he again holed out from off the green for his seventh birdie in his last 10 holes and a second-round 65.

At 15-under 129, Short wound up with a one-shot lead and two rounds to play in Gulfport.

Adam Webb

“It was fun out there today. I finally got the putter hot,” he said.

Short is making his sixth start of the year on the eGolf Tour, having notched a pair of top-30 finishes at the Mimosa Hills Open (T26) and the Cabarrus Classic (T19) this summer. The T19 marked the second-best finish of his six-year eGolf Tour career, which kicked off when he turned professional in 2008 following a standout career.

Playing sparingly throughout the season can be tough on Short, who relies on help from local sponsors to tee it up when money is available. That setup leaves playing opportunities few and far between, and puts small weekend events on a near-mandatory pedestal.

“I played in a little pro-am in Greensboro (NC) last weekend and made everything. I shot 62 the last day to break the course record, so I came in here feeling good about my game and feeling good about my putting,” Short said. “I was just hoping it was going to continue.”

Through 36 holes, the Mark McCumber-designed Windance Country Club course has been rendered nearly defenseless, with stray showers softening an already-damp course, and allowing players to simply throw darts into the greens.

“Once I start making birdies, it’s like ‘Let’s go,’” he said. “If I get to 1-over, I want to get back to even right away. You can do that out here.”

To his knowledge, it’s been over two years since Short has sat on an overnight lead in a tournament. That lapse of time didn’t faze him one bit when asked if he’d be prepared to lead on Friday morning.

“I feel comfortable with where my game is. Even if I’m nervous, I think I’ll be okay because I’m comfortable with the way I’m playing. To me, that’s what matters the most.”

Adam Webb of Ridgeway, VA and Dustin Bray of Asheboro, NC are one shot back of Short at 14-under 130.

Webb carded a 5-under 67 on Wednesday to sit tied for 16th through 18 holes, three shots back of the sextuplet of co-leaders.

Out of the gate on day two, Webb played stellar golf. A made 15-footer on the par-4 opening hole became one of nine birdies carded in the round for the 26-year-old.

An up-and-down birdie on the par-5 third gave way to an unlikely birdie on the par-4 fifth, when Webb blocked his tee shot into a hazard, but wound up with a fortuitous break. After his ball came to rest in a somewhat dry spot, he hit his approach to 40 feet and converted the curling putt for a birdie to jump to 3-under on the day.

“I was looking at bogey or double and I wound up making birdie, so that really helped to jumpstart my round,” he said.

From there, Webb added birdies on Nos. 6 and 7 to turn in 5-under 30 and 10-under for the week.

The former Longwood University star added another trifecta of birdies on the back nine, converting three straight kick-in birdie putts on Nos. 12, 13 and 14 to reach 8-under on the day and 13-under total.

At the par-4 18th, Webb threw a dart of an approach shot into the front-left hole location, leaving himself less than half an inch for his ninth birdie and a 9-under 63 – in turn marking the low round of the week.

Dustin Bray

“I liked the way that I kept my foot down on the accelerator today instead of getting to 5- or 6-under par and stalling,” he said after his round. “I’ve been hitting it pretty well, with a lot of wedges in hand – so that helps, obviously.”

Webb’s 2014 campaign has been a tale of two seasons, to say the least.

After missing his first two cuts of the year, Webb survived cold and wet weather during mid-March to win the rain-shortened NorthStone Open in Huntersville, NC. A 5-under par total on a demanding NorthStone Country Club course netted a two-shot win over Derek Rende, but more importantly, delivered an exemption into the Web.com Tour’s South Georgia Classic in April.

Making his first start on the PGA TOUR’s developmental circuit, Webb shined throughout the week, opening with rounds of 70-70-65-74—279 for a T8 finish after holding a share of the lead with nine holes to play in the final round.

Bray, a four-time winner on the eGolf Tour, was one of the event’s 18-hole co-leaders after opening his week with five straight birdies and an 8-under 64.

The former UNC Tar Heel star opened day two on the front nine, birdieing Nos. 3 and 7 to turn in 2-under 33 and 10-under par for the tournament.

Birdies on 10 and 12 took Bray to 4-under for his round, while late birdies on 16 and 17 pushed him to 6-under par, where he eventually finished after a par at the last gave him a second-round 66.

Bray is making just his fourth eGolf Tour start of the year after dominating eGolf Florida over the winter with three wins and the tour’s inaugural money title.

Now 33, Bray spent 2007 through 2009 on the Web.com Tour, posting four top-10 finishes, one of which was a runner-up at the 2008 Nationwide Children’s Hospital Invitational.

The 36-hole cut fell at 6-under 138, with 60 players making it through to the final two rounds of play. Round three of the Island View Casino Championship will begin at 7:30 AM on Friday morning, with players competing in threesomes off of Nos. 1 and 10 tees. The tournament is open to the public and free of charge.