Charlotte (AFP) – Jhonattan Vegas, chasing his first major title, clung to a two-stroke lead after Friday’s second round of the PGA Championship while top-ranked Scottie Scheffler and South Korean Kim Si-woo made late charges at Quail Hollow. Vegas closed with a double bogey to fire a one-under-par 70 and stand on eight-under 134 after 36 holes with France’s Matthieu Pavon shooting 65 to share second with England’s Matt Fitzpatrick and Kim on 136.
“It was a great day,” Vegas said. “I can’t really get too down on myself for making double on 18. I feel like I managed my game really well. I was feeling it out there. It was nice to keep the momentum. The game was there and the feeling was good. I wasn’t happy to finish with that double on 18 but we have two more days to go.”
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Kim aced the par-three sixth hole from 252 yards with a five-wood, hitting the longest hole-in-one in major history, and added six birdies against a lone bogey to equal Max Homa for the day’s low round of 64. “It was exciting,” Kim said of the ace. “I hit it like exactly how I wanted. So it was cool and it was pretty memorable hole-in-one in major.”
Sharing fifth on 137 were Americans Homa and Scheffler, who had four birdies and a bogey to shoot 68 and pull within three of Vegas. “Most of me is just glad to be close to the lead,” Scheffler said. “There are going to be some bumps in the road. It’s all about how you respond to those. I did a good job of responding to those mistakes and keeping myself in the tournament.”
Scheffler’s playing partners in the feature group — second-ranked Masters winner Rory McIlroy and third-ranked defending champion Xander Schauffele — grinded through the final hole just to make the cut on the number at one-over 143. McIlroy, who completed a career Grand Slam with his Masters win, closed bogey-bogey to flirt with missing the weekend, lipping out from three feet for par at 17 and hitting off a hospitality tent roof into rough at 18 and two-putting for bogey from 36 feet to shoot 69. Closing par putts at 17 and 18 from inside four feet gave Schauffele a 71.
Vegas, who fired a 64 on Thursday, never lost the lead despite pressure while Pavon and Homa each delivered their career-low major rounds. “That was really very solid,” Pavon said. “Got a nice momentum with the putter early on. A few birdies on the front nine helped me to be more confident on the back nine. Overall it was a super satisfying day.” Homa shot 30 on the same back nine where he fired 39 on Thursday. “I knew the game was good,” Homa said. “Didn’t know I was going to shoot seven-under but I’ll take it.”
Fitzpatrick, the 2022 US Open champion, fired a 68 and will draw upon his major win to try and pad his trophy haul. “The fact I’ve done it before, that’s always a big confidence boost,” he said. “You can lean on that. I’m just happy to be in this position.”
– Sleepless Vegas night –
World number 70 Vegas, without a top-20 major finish in 16 tries, became the lowest-ranked player to lead a major outright after each of the first two rounds since American Gil Morgan at the 1992 US Open. Vegas bounced his tee shot at the par-three 17th off a bunker rake and onto the green to set up a par, then found a greenside bunker at 18 and missed a three-foot bogey putt. “A little bit of a lucky break there on 17 and finishing quite crappy on 18,” Vegas said. “But overall solid.”
Vegas battled a sleepless night sitting on the lead. “Not getting a great sleep and having to come back early put me not in the best mood all day,” Vegas said. “It felt like three hours… I got some sleep but it wasn’t the best.” American Jordan Spieth, needing a win to complete a career Grand Slam, missed the cut on 144. Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, whose 19 made major cuts were the longest active streak, and two-time major winner Justin Thomas were out on 145.
© 2024 AFP
