PGA CHAMPIONSHIP 2023 HEADLINES
- Conners leads with Scheffler two behind
- Bradley, Hovland chasing
- Rory +2 heading into back nine
- Rahm battling but still+5
- PGA pro Michael Block shoots 70, 70 (Level)
- Weather due to be tricky with high winds
PGA CHAMPIONSHIP LEADERBOARD 2023
- 1 Conners -6
- T2 Scheffler -4
- T2 Bradley -4
- 4 Hovland -3
- T5 Suh -2
USEFUL LINKS
- PGA Championship Tee Times
- PGA Championships Picks and Predictions
- Weather Forecast for PGA Championship
- All You Need To Know About 2023 PGA Championship
- How To Watch The PGA Championship
WE ARE BACK!
Are you ready for another mammoth day of Major golf? Good so are we
COLE LEADS THE WAY
Eric Cole was in fantastic form yesterday to lead as darkness fell. Will he be able to keep his lead going into round 2? He is on course very soon.
How round 2 tee times work
The players remain in the same groups as for the first round, and there is again a morning and an afternoon wave with a two-tee start. Those who played in the morning wave yesterday, play in the afternoon one today, and vice versa. Similarly, those who started on the 1st tee yesterday will now start at the 10th and vice versa.
Matters are slightly complicated by some players still having to finish off their first round this morning, notably overnight leader Eric Cole. These golfers all went off at 7am to resume their round from wherever they had left off. (Once the klaxon for the end of play was sounded, players had the option of stopping and marking their ball, or to carry on the hole they were playing, but they could not play one beyond the hole they were on when the klaxon sounded.)
These are the tee times for the morning wave:
7.00am 1st tee Sam Ryder, Gabe Reynolds, Brandon Wu
7.05am 10th tee Matt Cahill, Taylor Montgomery, Cam Davis
7.11am 1st tee Sadom Kaewkanjana, Ben Kern, Thorbjorn Olesen
7.16am 10th tee Michael Block, Hayden Buckley, Taylor Pendrith
7.22am 1st tee Webb Simpson, YE Yang, Danny Willett
7.27am 10th tee Alex Beach, Brendon Todd, Sihwan Kim
7.33am 1st tee Sepp Straka, Harris English, Robert Macintyre
7.38am 10th tee Patrick Reed, Rasmus Hojgaard, Nick Taylor
7.44am 1st tee Thomas Pieters, Keith Mitchell, Pablo Larrazabal
7.49am 10th tee Christiaan Bezuidenhout, John Somers, Chez Reavie
7.55am 1st tee Lucas Herbert, Brian Harman, Callum Shinkwin
8.00am 10th tee Tommy Fleetwood, Cameron Young, Hideki Matsuyama
8.06am 1st tee Tom Kim, Sam Burns, Abraham Ancer
8.11am 10th tee Adam Scott, Max Homa, Tony Finau
8.17am 1st tee Sungjae Im, Chris Kirk, Seamus Power
8.22am 10th tee Xander Schauffele, Tyrrell Hatton, Dustin Johnson
8.28am 1st tee Si Woo Kim, Stephan Jaeger, Anirban Lahiri
8.33am 10th tee Patrick Cantlay, Rickie Fowler, Phil Mickelson
8.39am 1st tee Victor Perez, Aaron Wise, Jordan Smith
8.44am 10th tee Alex Smalley, Russell Henley, Mito Pereira
8.50am 1st tee Chris Sanger, JJ Spaun, David Micheluzzi
8.55am 10th tee Adam Hadwin, Matt Kuchar, Talor Gooch
9.01am 1st tee Thomas Detry, JJ Killeen, Matt Wallace
9.06am 10th tee Justin Rose, Billy Horschel, Francesco Molinari
9.12am 1st tee Nick Hardy, Greg Koch, Eric Cole
9.17am 10th tee Russell Grove, Patrick Rodgers, Ben Taylor
Tight, fast fairways have been proving elusive
Yesterday just under 42% off all drives found the fairway, set against this season’s average on the PGA Tour of 59%. Finding the Oak Hill rough could be penal – the average approach out of rough from 150-175 yards ended 58ft from the hole, 15ft further way than the PGA Tour season average.
Been wondering who overnight leader Eric Cole is?
(Let you into a secret, you are probably not been the only one.) Our bloodhound in chief, Sam Tremlett, has been looking into Eric Cole’s life story – and it’s quite a story.
Cole no longer leads, Bryson DeChambeau does
Cole finds water left of the green and double bogeys his first hole of the day. Cole falls back to tied 2nd with Bryson DeChambeau moving up to top spot.
Cole finds the right side of the fairway on 7, though, with a 325-yard drive. That should help to calm any jangling nerves. He has set up an approach shot of 137 yards.
Glorious approach shot by Cole
He hits it to 5 ft 8 of the hole. Birdie chance and with it a chance to reclaim top spot, albeit only joint top spot now.
Cole misses
He makes par, so no immediate bounce back. He now has two holes of his first round to play.
Cole with two to play, misses fairway on 8
His ball ends in the rough over on the right side of the fairway. His drive went 280 yards, so he had 161 yards to the pin. His two playing partners found the fairway. His approach finishes 51ft from the hole.
Block moving up
Michael Block, has made a couple of birdies and is now in a tie for sixth, two shots off the lead. He is the head golf pro at Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club in case you were wondering; and ,indeed, he still is even if you weren't.
Question for the ages
When Phil Mickelson won this event in 2019, he became the first man in his fifties to win a Major. But the seven subsequent Majors have all been won by golfers under 30. This is the first time that there have been seven consecutive winners in their 20s of the modern Majors.
Here are the ages of those currently near the top of the leaderboard
Viktor Hovland (25)
Scottie Sheffler (26)
Bryson DeChambeau (29)
Corey Connors (31)
Keith Mitchell (31)
Eric Cole (34)
Ryan Fox (36)
Keegan Bradley (36)
Dustin Johnson (38)
Adam Scott (42)
Michael Block (46)
Round 2 pin positions
Some of these are barely on the green at all!
Cole finishes his first round
He has gone round in three under with six birdies. But his double bogey in his first hole of this morning has cost him the lead. He finishes the first round in a four-way tie for 2nd. DeChambeau leads.
Early indications as to who will win?
All of the last 18 men's Majors have been won by someone who went round under par in the first round. The last 10 Major winners have all been in the top 10 after the first round. If this pattern is to continue, it has whittled down the list of potential winners somewhat.
Who has been quick out of the blocks today?
Michael Block and Cam Davis are both 3 under for the round so far. They are on their sixth hole. This has taken Block to tied 2nd, alongside Dustin Johnson, Eric Cole and Scottie Scheffler. Davis is now in a tie for 7th.
Best Current Golfer Not To Have Won A Major?
The PGA Championship has yielded more first-time Major winners than the other three Majors. Since 1960, 35 players have secured their first – and sometimes only – Major at the USPGA.
So, who best deserves that bittersweet moniker of the Best Current Golfer Not To Have Won A Major? Is it Lee Westwood or Luke Donald, the only men to have been World No 1 but not win a Major?
Or does it have to be more up to-date, so current world number four Patrick Cantlay, or perhaps world number five Xander Schauffele, the only man to have finished in the top-15 in past four Majors? Or, stretching it a bit, what about Englishman Tyrrell Hatton, who has made the cut in the past five Majors, one of only six players who have done so. Or even Viktor Hovland who is a combined 20 under par for the his last two Major appearances?
However of all these golfers, only Hovland appears to be in competition to win this one at this point.
Quick question
Earlier said that Tyrrell Hatton is one of six players who has made the cut in the past five Majors. So, can you name the other five? Answer in five minutes.
Answer
The other five who have made made the cut in each of the past five Majors = Fitzpatrick, Matsuyama, Niemann, Rahm and Reed.
Early risers
Michael Block has risen 15 positions today to move into a tie for second.
Cam Davis, Max Homa and Nick Taylor have risen 14 places to T13.
When do the marquee groups hit the course in round 2?
Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka, Gary Woodland at 1.25pm
Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa at 1.36pm
Shane Lowry, Jordan Spieth, Viktor Hovland at 1.47pm
Matt Fitzpatrick, Cam Smith, Jon Rahm at 1.58pm
No change in the lead
Bryson DeChambeau moved to the top of the leaderboard this morning when Eric Cole double bogeyed his first hole on resuming his first round. DeChambeau has stayed top ever since. Although the leaderboard is bunching up behind him, no-one has managed to clamber up alongside him. Dustin Johnson saw a putt lip out which would have given him the joint lead, but that is about as near as we have come to another change. DeChambeau goes out at 2.31pm, in the penultimate group off the 10th tee.
Block into a tie for second
A birdie on the 1st, his 10th hole, does it. It was his fourth birdie of the round. He has given himself a decent birdie chance on 2, too.
FLAGS MOVING
Wind is certainly picking up, anyone who can get to the house under par are going to be very well placed at the end of the day.
BOX OFFICE RORY
Rory McIlroy had a mixed day yesterday. Feeling under the weather, at one stage he was 3 over, but three birdies in his final six holes helped him drag it back to 1 over.
He achieved this despite only finding the fairway twice off the tee all round, his worst driving accuracy in any Major round. Only three men in the past 20 years have equalled him in making only two fairways but still going round in 71 or fewer shots.
He takes to the fairways – well, the tees anyway – at 1.36pm local time, 6.36pm in the UK.
BLOCK IN TROUBLE AGAIN
He has been playing so well, but he drops another shot on the par-3 5th - back to one under.
ROSE BLOOMS
A birdie for Justin Rose and he joins Bryson at 4 under par.
TRICKY UP AND DOWN FOR ROSE
Rose has a tricky chip on his 8th (17) - but knocks it to tap in range.
CURRENT CUT MARK
At the moment there is 83 players at +4 - the top 70 and ties make the weekend... that number could go out if conditions continue to struggle.
BLOCK FADING
Unfortunately Michael Block doubled the 5th hole to drop to even par. He is also struggling on the 6th hole his 15th.
BLOCK PARTY CONTINUES
Saves his par on 6 and has a lengthy par putt on 7 (his 16th) - can he get to the end of round 2 around level par?
BIRDIE FOR DJ
Dustin Johnson won last week on the LIV Tour and is back to 2 under now - just two shots off the lead now.
ROSE DROPS BACK
Bogey on 18, his 9th hole puts Justin Rose back to -3.
WATCH OUT FOR DAVIS
Aussie Cam Davies is at -1 with just two holes of his second round to play, will be clubhouse leader if he sticks at that number.
DJ HAS A HOSSLE ROCKET
Not the first one we have seen today, but Dustin Johnson has a horrendous issue on the par-3 3rd
GOOD PAR FOR ROSE
Stays at 3-under-par with an excellent lengthy par putt on the 1st (his 10th).
Sheff to cook up something special?
Scottie Scheffler has spent most of the morning in T2 or T3. His second round will begin at 1.25pm local time, 6.25pm in the UK. He hit only 11 greens in regulation yesterday, but avoided making bogey all round, the first time he has done that in a Major. Since the start of the 2020, he is a combined 51-under-par in Majors, 13 strokes better than anyone else during that period.
Five going for three
Only five golfers have won at least three PGA Championships, but five of this year’s field have twice been PGA Champion: Koepka, McIlroy, Mickelson and Thomas. None of this quartet are currently looking likely to add that third victory this year.
International look to top of the leaderboard
Six nationalities are represented in the top 9 of the leaderboard. Only the US (DeChambeau, Scheffler and Bradley; 1st, T2, and T5 respectively) and Australia, (Scott and Fox, both T5) have more than one representative there.
How a LIV player can ensure his return next year
Much noise has been made, especially from the LIV side, about how LIV players are at a disadvantage in qualifying for Majors as LIV events do not qualify for Official World Golf Ranking points. But there are other ways to qualify, and over the next two-and-a-half days many golfers will qualify for next year’s PGA Championship. The most obvious way is by winning as past champions are given a lifetime exemption to the tournament. But anyone who finishes in the top 15 receives an invitation to the following year’s tournament.
The English can but dream...
With Justin Rose there or thereabouts, its time to dream? Or is it ffffffffaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr too early?
Got asked a great question by my @SkySportsGolf colleagues... when was the last time there were two different Englishmen as reigning major champs at the same time1923-24... Arthur Havers and Cyril WalkerMay 19, 2023
What they are playing for
The Wanamaker Trophy is named after its donor, Rodman Wanamaker, a businessman who, in January 1916, invited invited leading figures in professional golf to a dinner in New York to discuss his idea of forming a body to improve the standing of professional golfers. The upshot was the formation of the Professional Golfers' Association of America. Wanamaker believed this body should hold it own prestigious annual competition, and he put up $2,500 in prize money and commissioned a trophy for the winner. Seven months later, the first PGA Championship was held, at Siwanoy Country Club in New York. The club’s head pro, Thomas Kerrigan, hit the first shot.
The trophy the players compete for now is a replica of the original. Walter Hagen had won it in 1924, and 1925. When he was asked why he had not brought the trophy back in 1926, he replied that it seemed simplest not to, as he was going to win it again. He did. He also won in 1927, But in 1928 when Leo Diegel won it, the truth cane out; Hagen has lost the trophy back in 1925 when out partying after his win,.Although details remain vague, what is clear that when he left his taxi (to go nightclubbing), the trophy did not, Some believe he simply forgot it; but he said he had paid the taxi driver to take the trophy to his hotel.
The PGA had a replica made. But in 1930 the original was found in an unmarked case in the basement of L.A. Young & Company, the firm that made Hagen's golf clubs. The original trophy is now at the PGA Historical Center in Florida. The champions’ names are still added annually to the original, but is the replica that is presented to the winners.
Seve remembered
Seve Ballesteros, during his wayward years off the tee, was asked if he wished the fairways were wider. He replied that he wanted them narrower, so that everyone else would miss them as well. I was reminded of this comment watching Justin Rose's round in which he has not hit a single fairway - he has five more attempts left - yet has put together a round with three birdies and only one bogey.
Block has been speaking about making the cut
"To make the cut, which was one of the last goals of my golf career, is an amazing thing. And to do it at Oak Hill which has such an history and prestige.... I am very excited to play at the weekend and, to be honest, my game is actually pretty good right now where I think I can compete and have a nice finish and make my wife happy." He is the clubhouse on level par, after two rounds of 70.
Rahm has it all to do
Rahm tees off in the second round at 1.58pm local time, 6.28pm in the UK. He was one of the surprises of the first round. In missing nine fairways he had racked up more misses than he had over all four rounds at Augusta earlier in the year when winning the Green Jacket.
When he double bogeyed the 7th he had gone to 7 over, a score he had last reached in a tour event last July during the final round of the Scottish Open.
The last man to win a men Major having carded an opening 76 was Jack Fleck, in 1955 at the US Open. That US Open was only the second one to be shown live on television. Coverage was limited to three cameras showing the 17th and 18th holes in an hour’s live broadcast on the final afternoon. Back then final pairings were not, as now, arranged by leaderboard order, so the coverage in effect just dipped in and out of part of the final round. All a bit different to now.
Rose misses another fairway
That is ten in a row he has avoided now. That is the first time he has done that since his final round at Doral in 2005. There is hope for all us hackers as he is still tied 2nd with the yet-to-play-their-second-rounds Corey Conners and Scottie Scheffler, and one shot behind DeChambeau, who also has yet to take to the course today.
SAM TREMLETT TAKING OVER
Thanks Roderick for an unreal live blog shift today! I (Sam) am now taking over for the next three hours and looking forward to see where the cutline is, who moves up the leaderboard, and who gets a rest this weekend.
ICYMI - CAMERON YOUNG PENALTY
For those of you unaware, Cameron Young was penalized two strokes and it looks like it will cost him a place in the tournament this weekend. Here is the email I received earlier;
During play of the 16th hole (the 7th hole of his round), Young putted up close to the hole and marked his ball. As his ball-marker was on the line of play of both Tommy Fleetwood and Hideki Matsuyama, he correctly moved his ball-marker one clubhead-length to the side. After the other players completed the hole, Young failed to move the ball-marker back to its original position. As a result, when he replaced the ball and holed out, Young had played from a wrong place and incurred the General Penalty (two-strokes) for breaching Rule 15.3.
He sits at eight-over right now, four-over today.
CANTLAY RISING UP LEADERBOARD
So often Patrick Cantlay is a disappointment in Majors, (seriously go and take a look at his Major record), but he just has it today. He is four-under for his round which is one of the best out there right now, and he is level par for the tournament.
Oh and he has another birdie chance on his 15th coming up.
6 TOUGHEST HOLE RIGHT NOW
Oak Hill is a beast so far over the first two days, and Justin Ray indicates how tough 6 is right now. Cannot recommend following him enough by the way, dude never misses.
The 6th at Oak Hill is an absolute monster today.- Averaging +0.84, field is +53 there and counting- 1 birdie so far by the field- 27% have hit green in regulation- Players are 2-for-19 hitting the GIR from the roughMay 19, 2023
SAM BURNS?!
Just went to the bottom of the leaderboard and just noticed Burns sitting at 15-over! He is 11-over today and he has had every number ranging from 3 to 8 today on his card. No idea what has happened there...
BIG NAMES TEEING OFF SOON
Here are the next few groups teeing off in the next hour or so. Some big names needing some good scores indeed.
- 1.25pm: Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka, Gary Woodland
- 1.36pm: Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa
- 1.47pm: Jordan Spieth, Shane Lowry, Viktor Hovland
- 1.58pm: Jon Rahm, Matt Fitzpatrick, Cameron Smith
TV COVERAGE...
Instead of watching players out on the course on Sky, I am having to watch Keith Mitchell in the Sky Zone. Sure he is a lovely guy, and I've interviewed Nick Dougherty and he definitely is, but can I watch the golf now please?
SCHEFFLER, KOEPKA TEE OFF
I am slightly worried Scottie Scheffler is going to run away with this tournament over the next couple of days but regardless he has just teed off alongside Brooks Koepka and Gary Woodland. Low scores needed from those two guys today and all three hit good drives
ROSE DROPS ANOTHER SHOT, AS DOES DJ
After hitting his 1st fairway today on his 15th hole, Rose makes a bit of a mess of the par-4. His second leaves him having to play out of the rough, over a bunker to the pin, but he clearly chunks it and goes long. He then gets up and down from there to get out of there with a bogey, he is back to two-under.
Dustin Johnson also drops another shot on his final hole to go back to two-over.
SCHEFFLER TAP IN BIRDIE AT 1
What did I just say? Worried about Scheffler running away with this, and he has just hit his first approach shot to tap in birdie range.
MCILROY, JT, MORIKAWA TEE OFF
Eight Major titles in this group, can one of them really shoot a low score today to get back in the tournament? May I say the crowd was good and raucous on the 1st hole as they teed off, long may that continue.
CONNERS MISSES CHANCE TO JOIN LEADERS
Canadian Conners hits two excellent shots on his 1st hole to set up a chance to get to four-under and atop the leaderboard. Sadly his putt juuuusstt slides by.
Elsewhere Rose bogeys another hole and Rory is making a mess of the 1st. Needs an up and down for par, which he just about does.
SCHEFFLER FLAGS ANOTHER
Scottie hits another beautiful approach shot at the 2nd. Another birdie chance coming up to get him into the solo lead.
WORST SHIRT OUT THERE RIGHT NOW?
I know we still have Viktor Hovland to tee off but Jordan Spieth is my leader for the worst shirt of today. I will get a picture up ASAP!
SCHEFFLER BIRDIES AGAIN
Talk about a perfect start, Scheffler has birdied the 2nd hole to take the outright lead. Ominous...
MICKELSON MILESTONE MAYBE?
The cut is still to be set of course, but if it gets to five-over then Phil Mickelson has joined some illustrious company.
Phil Mickelson is in at +5, which will most likely make the cut.If/when it happens, it will be his 27th at the PGA Championship, tying Jack Nicklaus and Raymond Floyd for most all-time. It will also be his 100th career made cut in a major.May 19, 2023
HOVLAND TO THREE-UNDER
In some bright orange pants and a pretty restrained shirt, Hovland birdies the first hole to get to three-under, two back of Scheffler. Seem to be a lot of birdies flying in right now, maybe the wind is about to pick up, a calm before the storm situation.
NO LUCK FOR RAHM AT 1
Needing birdies at six-over Jon Rahm's good chance at 1 just slides by. A frustrated figure at the moment.
Viktor Hovland hit another great iron shot and has an outside shot for birdie at 2.
FAST START FOR MIN WOO LEE
The PGA Championship leaderboard on the official site is incredibly, incredibly slow, but I have just seen Min Woo Lee looks to be four-under through his first five holes today. He currently sits at one-under for the tournament.
HOVLAND BIRDIES 2
Fast start for Hovland as well as he birdies the first two holes to get to four-under, joining Bryson DeChambeau who is teeing off soon.
SOLID RORY START
Three holes, three pars. Does look like the opening two holes are birdie chances at the moment but hey, at least he isn't going the wrong way on the leaderboard.
RAHM/SMITH BIRDIE 2
Two Major winners Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith both make excellent birdies on the 2nd hole. Rahm is +5, Smith +1.
Shoutout to Smith yesterday by the way who was wearing the crispiest hoodie. I say that because I also have that hoodie...
RAIN HAS ARRIVED, BRYSON TEEING OFF
A lot of umbrellas are going up in Rochester which unfortunately may soften the course up. I wanted more firm and fast conditions!
Bryson DeChambeau is about to tee off as well.
GO TO WATCHING GOLF SNACK?
Just had a random thought, what is your go-to watching golf snack? Chips or crisps? Popcorn? Fruit? I am currently chowing down on chocolate covered rice cakes and a cup of tea and I have no idea what that says about me.
Hovland bogeys the 3rd after a failed up and down just so you know.
CONNERS TO FOUR-UNDER
At last Conners is able to hole a birdie putt after it seemed like close calls on every hole he has played today. He joins Bryson at four-under.
Fellow Canadian Adam Svensson is also two-under for the day and the same for the tournament currently.
BIT OF LEAF BLOWER ACTION ON 5
Weird delay going on at the 5th in the Scheffler, Koepka group. Two groundsman with leaf blowers sweep the green quickly, no idea why, there didn't look to be too many leaves on the green...
GREAT LEADERBOARD MIX RIGHT NOW
It just hit me how cool the current leaderboard is. Some huge names at the top, youngsters, Bryson, and some names you might not have heard of before. Not to mention a PGA Professional in Michael Block!
GUYS WE WON'T SEE THIS WEEKEND
Here are some names I am big time disappointed in because we won't see them this weekend. (I won't include any player at +7 because who knows if the cut gets down there given how tough the course is!)
- Tom Kim +8
- Cameron Young +9
- Rasmus Hojgaard +9
- Sungjae Im +13
- Sam Burns +14
BRADLEY MOVES TO THREE-UNDER
Keegan Bradley jumps up the leaderboard with a glorious birdie putt that plops in dead weight at the 2nd. Additionally Corey Conners has a chance to move to five-under and the co-lead on his 6th hole.
CONNERS BIRDIES TO JOIN SCHEFFLER, WOODLAND INSANE HOLE-OUT!
Conners makes his birdie chance to join Scheffler at the top of the leaderboard, but the big cheer you probably heard was Gary Woodland with an insane hole-out from the bunker on the 6th hole.
His third shot was up against the back lip of a greenside bunker so he used a fairway wood to bump it forward. Then facing a normal bunker shot, he holes out with a wedge! Unreal scenes!
SPIETH SHIRT
Finally managed to get a pic of Spieth's shirt that I mentioned earlier. I told you it was bad...
RORY HAVING SHOCKER AT 6
After a solid start to his round Rory's having a mare at 6. His tee shot finds the creek and his 3rd shot nearly does the same. A big score could be coming up for the Northern Irishman.
Bryson also bogeys the 3rd hole to move back to three-under.
RORY ESCAPES WITH BOGEY ON 6
I said he was having a mare, and he legitimately was, but somehow Rory has escaped the toughest hole on the course, the 6th, with just a bogey. An excellent mid-range putt.
SCHEFFLER BOGEYS, CONNERS LEADS
Scheffler makes a bogey on the 7th despite his par putt trying its hardest to go in for him! We have Canadian Corey Conners atop the leaderboard.
Oh and Rory has made my blood boil again hitting an iron for safety, into the creek on the 7th hole. He will have to drop there. (The image below is how I feel watching Rory all the time.
BRADLEY HOLES ANOTHER, AS DOES CONNERS
Keegan Bradley and Conners both just made excellent putts, the former doing so for birdie to get to four-under, and latter for par to remain at five. Lots of interesting moves and shots going on right now.
RAHM LOOKING FOR IGNITION
The Spanish Masters champion has played some rock-solid golf in his second round so far. One-under for the round, he is striking it well but cannot seem to get putts to drop. As Paul McGinley just said, he needs that one spark and we could see him go low the rest of the day. He sits on five-over at the moment.
CONNERS ESCAPES 18 WITH PAR
The Canadian's putter is hot. He played the 18th (his 9th) poorly but manages to hit a solid wedge shot onto the green and holes an excellent putt to remain at five-under.
HANDING OVER TO MICHAEL WESTON
And just like that, my three hour shift is done! That flew by and I am handing over to Michael Weston, who I am going to stitch up with this image from a recent testing day. Not sure posing for the camera is his strongest suit but the Peter Millar gear is pure fire. (I was going to use the image of him in shorts but didn't want to go too far)
Hovland lurking
Viktor burns the edge of the cup on 8, stays -3. Yesterday it was the shirt, today it's the slacks.... bold.
Rookie on the move
The rookie throws it in reverse. Justin Suh, everyone. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/UNhSKaHCEyMay 19, 2023
How good does this guy look. One to keep an eye, looks to have all the ingredients to do some real damage on Tour.
Bryson in trouble
Plugged on 6, has a hack and he's still in the greenside trap...
McIlroy drops a bomb
Much-needed birdie on 9, from 45 feet no less. Meanwhile, back to BDC and he's on the dance floor... but staring at a double. Looks like he'll be dropping back to -1.
Rahm battling
World number one sees a good chance slide by at 8, stays +5. He's grinding. Can't write him off, but he's going to need to shoot something in the low 30s on the back nine to get back into contention.
Bradley, meanwhile, goes close with a birdie effort to join Conners at -5. Loves a PGA Champs, does Keegan.
Roars for Rors
McIlroy, +2, sends one into orbit from the heavy rough (they're strong these guys) on 10 and he's in close. Fabulous shot. 8 feet or so for bird - crowd liked that one. C'mon Rory.
McIlroy for birdie...
Nooooooo. Good chance gone. He's frustrated but not a bad par after the tee shot.
Conners two clear
- 1 Conners -6
- T2 Scheffler -4
- T2 Bradley -4
- 4 Hovland -3
- T5 Suh -2
Bradley finds trouble
Bryson steadies the ship with a par after that double, almost making an unlikely birdie with a lengthy putt. Conners finds the green on the par-3 3rd, looking good. However, Bradley in trouble on 7 after water problems. He's staring a double in the face.
