It’s a story you heard in fourth grade, but golf fans know it well: “Rory McIlroy and the Inevitable Quest for a Fifth Major,” now in its 10th printing, dating back to 2015, when McIlroy was pursuing a career Grand Slam and fifth major title at Augusta after winning the 2014 British Open and PGA Championship.
Nearly a decade later, he’s still chasing both. Of course, it’s still a story today, and he started the second round of the U.S. Open with a shared lead. McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay each shot 5-under 65 on Thursday to take a one-stroke lead over the field.
McIlroy, like many of the players who entered early on Friday, hung in there until the end, finishing with a 2-over 72 after reaching the clubhouse just two strokes behind the leader thanks to a bogey on the final hole.
McIlroy stumbled a bit, but Thomas Detry stayed focused. He tied with Cantlay at 5-under soon after the turn thanks to some great putting, then briefly took the lead on the back nine. Bryson DeChambeau also stayed in the mix after a rollercoaster start, hitting his approach right next to the cup on the 18th hole for a final birdie to move to 4-under for the week.
Now that the afternoon rounds have begun, Ludvig Oberg and Matthew Pavon have joined the fray. Oberg is also in a tie for the lead with Cantlay, at 6 under after the first nine holes. Of course, the talk is about who will and won’t make the cut. Scottie Scheffler, who has been so dominant all season, will miss the cut for the first time in 672 days. Tiger Woods is in danger.
Oh, and on Friday morning, Sepp Straka got the first hole-in-one of the week at Pinehurst.
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live50 Updates
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Second best shot of the day
The best shot today was by Sepp Straka who hit a hole in one today. Next up was Sahith Teegala who hit this amazing birdie shot.
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Cutline Update
Currently, the cut line is +3 with 61 players, and the cut line is set at a tie with the top 60, so if two players lose by one stroke it becomes +4, which would mean a lot for players like Wyndham Clark, Keegan Bradley and maybe Tiger Woods.
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Ludwig Aberg takes the lead for a few seconds
The 24-year-old Swede got another birdie, this time from 10 feet on the par-5 fifth hole, to take the lead, but the lead lasted just a minute.
That’s because Patrick Cantlay, who was in the lead going into the sixth hole, made a 21-foot putt on the par-3 to move up to six under.
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Three people tied for first place
Frenchman Mathieu Pavon scored two birdies in the first two holes to move him to the top of the leaderboard alongside Patrick Cantlay and Ludwig Aberg – a fantastic start for the 31-year-old.
Prior to this season, he had never missed the cut in any of the four major tournaments, tying for 12th at the Masters in April, missing the cut at the PGA in May and now tying for first at the U.S. Open.
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And then Tiger gives it back
Tiger bogeyed the fifth hole, a tough result considering it’s one of only two par 5s on the course. At +4, he’s one stroke behind the current cut line.
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Tiger Woods Gains Strokes
Tiger Woods birdied the fourth hole to move to three over par for the tournament, which would be a big accomplishment if the big cat stays in the mix this weekend.
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Ludwig Aberg takes the lead
Ludvig Aberg birdied the second hole to move into a tie for the lead with Patrick Cantlay, and as I said yesterday, if you don’t know who Aberg is, get to know him, because he’s going to be a regular in this tournament.
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Those words from Rory McIlroy summed up Pinehurst No. 2.
When asked how the course would challenge players, Rory McIlroy replied:
“I have to think about it more. Even though I hit a great drive on the eighth hole, I had to adjust my 151 to fit the hole. I’m going for 146. I can’t land 144 because it doesn’t fly that far. I can’t land 148 because it goes too far into the green.”
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