BLACK BUTTE RANCH — News of Darren Black’s second-round 64 whipped through Glaze Meadow Wednesday like the swirling winds that kept the first-round scores high at the Oregon Open Invitational.

“Darren, WOW,” declared Lake Oswego pro Scott Erdmann as he sat at the scorer’s table and looked up at the calligraphy scoreboard on the deck of Glaze Meadow’s clubhouse. “That’s kind of good.”

Erdmann’s reaction to Black’s score was hardly unique. Fellow golfers tend to notice when a course record set by a five-time PGA Tour winner is matched.

Black, a 34-year-old professional from Rainier Golf and Country Club in Seattle, shot an 8-under-par 64 to move to 10 under for the tournament. His 36-hole total is three strokes better than his closest competitor — John Cassidy, a pro from Alderbrook Golf & Yacht Club in Union, Wash. — heading into today’s final round.

Playing in the second group out on a mild morning with only a slight breeze, even Black struggled to put the round into context.

“The wind was definitely a factor yesterday,” said Black after posting his score. “That’s why scores were higher. I assume with less wind the scores will be lower today.

The scores were lower, including four golfers who shot 67, but not nearly as low as Black.

“I guess I hit it a little bit closer today and made some putts.” Black said.

How good was Black’s second round?

In the two years since Black Butte Ranch reopened Glaze Meadow after a $3.75 million overhaul, only Portland PGA Tour pro Ben Crane has equaled that score when he played at Glaze Meadow last summer. And that was not in competition, as was the case Wednesday when Black assumed control of the Oregon Open.

“It’s (PGA) Tour quality,” said Tom Baker, the head professional at Glaze Meadow who perhaps knows the course as well as anybody. “That’s almost all you have to say.

“Tipped out, tournament conditions … that’s phenomenal.”

Justin Kadin, an amateur who works for Tetherow Golf Club in Bend, leads the Central Oregon contingent golfers after he shot a 67 Wednesday to move into a tie for third place at 5 under. Bend amateur Jesse Heinly shot a 68 to get to even par and in a tie for 12th place, a shot ahead of Bend amateurs Dylan Cramer and Charlie Rice.

In all, 12 Central Oregon golfers made the 36-hole cut, which consisted of the top 70 players and ties.

Black did not have to worry about the cut, but he did get some help from a good friend.

Paired with Seattle-area amateur Michael Haack, his pro-am teammate (the first 36 holes of the Oregon Open is also a team completion) and a longtime friend, the two blasted out of the gates.

Haack, who was the first-round co-leader after shooting 69 on Tuesday, birdied the first three holes Wednesday. Not to be undone, Black birdied five of his first seven holes.

The two made the turn at a combined 9 under.

Even though Haack did not sustain that level of play, he carded a 71 and is in a tie for fourth place at 4 under, that early hot streak helped build momentum for Black, he said.

“It was kind of a shock when we made the turn,” Black said. “As a team we shot a (best-ball) 29. … When somebody is playing good and the other guy is playing good, usually you birdie the same hole. But we were ham-and-egging it (two things that go well together), so we played even better.”

“It’s even more fun when he is a friend, too,” Haack said about playing partners playing so well together. “That’s the best part. We’re playing against each other, but we are also playing together. It’s just different.

“I’m always rooting for him even we were going head to head in the last round.”

With a cushion, Black has his first win in a major championship in the PGA of America’s Pacific Northwest section in his grasp.

He finished in second place in the 2013 Oregon Open after he shot a final-round 66 at Juniper Golf Course in Redmond to nearly come from well behind to win. He also finished in fourth place at last month’s Washington Open.

Now the native of Lewiston, Idaho, can see the finish line.

“Once it finally happens it will probably be a lot easier the next time,” he said of winning the section’s top tournaments. “I definitely have to get over that hump.”

— Reporter: 541-617-7868, zhall@bendbulletin.com.