2 weeks ago
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Associated Press
May 16, 2025, 08:53 PM ET
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Jhonattan Vegas was successful beforehand for the archetypal clip successful a large and didn't backmost down Friday successful a PGA Championship filled with play everyplace but the apical of the leaderboard.
Looming ample amid an eclectic premix of contenders was Scottie Scheffler, inactive not successful afloat power of his crippled but lone 3 shots backmost going into the weekend.
Vegas cruised done the backmost 9 astatine muggy Quail Hollow and was 10-under par until helium missed a 3-foot putt connected 18 and ended an different splendid time with a treble bogey for an even-par 70, giving him a two-shot lead.
"Every accidental you get to pb a large and play with the pb is ne'er easy," Vegas said. "So I consciousness arrogant of a coagulated circular today."
He was astatine 8-under 134, 2 up of Matthieu Pavon of France (65), erstwhile U.S. Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick (68) and Si Woo Kim, the engaging South Korean who made an ace connected the longest par 3 astatine Quail Hollow connected his mode to a 64. Kim deed 5-wood connected the 252-yard sixth hole, making it the longest hole-in-one successful large title history
Defending champion Xander Schauffele had a stressful day conscionable to marque the chopped and widen his streak to 64, the longest connected the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods acceptable the grounds astatine 142 tournaments 20 years ago.
Rory McIlroy had different pugnacious time disconnected the tee, and possibly 1 crushed for hitting lone 10 retired of 28 fairways implicit 2 rounds came from quality that developed precocious successful the afternoon. Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio was archetypal to study his operator was tested and deemed not acceptable to play nether USGA regulations.
The trial was Tuesday and McIlroy had to find a caller operator to enactment successful play. For the 2nd consecutive day, the Masters champion and latest subordinate of the vocation Grand Slam nine declined to talk to the media.
McIlroy missed a 3-foot par putt connected the 17th and past hooked his tee changeable near of the creek adjacent the hospitality tents, fortunate it caromed backmost into heavy writer close of the creek. He needed to two-putt for bogey from 35 feet for a 69 to marque the chopped connected the number.
The Grand Slam nine astir apt stays astatine six members the remainder of the twelvemonth -- Jordan Spieth rallied with a 68 but missed the chopped by 1 shot, leaving him a PGA Championship abbreviated of getting each the majors.
Phil Mickelson could inactive triumph the U.S. Open for the Grand Slam astatine property 54. He surely didn't look the portion erstwhile helium took 4 swipes astatine the shot to get retired of a bunker connected No. 12 and coiled up with a quadruple-bogey eight. He made 7 birdies successful a circular of 72.
Now it's astir 36 holes to pursuit aft the 27-pound Wanamaker Trophy, which mightiness consciousness adjacent heavier to truthful galore players successful the premix who are newcomers to large pressure.
That starts with Vegas, whose vocation has been slowed by enarthrosis injuries successful caller years. He got backmost connected way by winning successful Minnesota past year. Still, helium has ne'er finished successful the apical 20 successful a large championship.
Pavon played successful the last radical of the U.S. Open past year. Fitzpatrick won the toughest trial successful play astatine Brookline 3 years agone and is pulling retired of a atrocious agelong of play.
A twelve others are comparatively caller to each this. Scheffler is not among them.
For the 2nd consecutive day, it took clip for the world's No. 1 subordinate to consciousness comfy with his swing. All the while, helium seldom got retired of presumption and kept inching closer. He dropped lone 1 changeable and responded with 2 consecutive birdies connected the backmost 9 for a 68.
That near Scheffler astatine 5-under 137 on with Max Homa, who has been struggling with his crippled everyplace but the majors. He tied for 12th astatine the Masters, and Homa changeable 64 astatine Quail Hollow, including a thrust connected the reachable 14th that settled a ft from the spread for eagle.
"I similar the presumption I'm successful going into the weekend," Scheffler said. "Obviously, I privation I was a small spot further up the leaderboard. I deliberation I got a batch retired of my crippled the past mates days. I felt like, arsenic the circular went on, my plaything continued to get amended and I was capable to deed immoderate cardinal shots down the agelong to springiness myself immoderate opportunities."
Ten players were astatine 4-under 138, a radical that included 3 players who a week agone had nary assurance they would beryllium successful the field.
Michael Thorbjornsen (70), the erstwhile No. 1 subordinate successful the PGA Tour University ranking erstwhile helium was astatine Stanford, got successful erstwhile Vijay Singh withdrew. Ryan Fox (71) won astatine Myrtle Beach past week for his archetypal PGA Tour title, getting him to the PGA Championship.
Alex Smalley (71) didn't get successful until Wednesday with Sahith Theegala withdrew. He got wrong 1 changeable of the pb with 3 birdies successful a four-hole agelong astir the turn, and inactive was 2 down until bogeys connected the past 2 holes.
But it starts with Vegas, the affable Venezuelan who already has piled up 13 birdies successful 2 rounds and has 36 holes up of him to spot if helium tin assistance the trophy.
