Jhonattan Vegas stays ahead in PGA Championship as Scottie Scheffler looms large

Doug Ferguson · The Associated Press

· Posted: May 16, 2025 10:29 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 infinitesimal ago

Scottie Scheffler wasn't paying attraction to each the play adjacent to him successful a star-power radical oregon up of him connected the leaderboard Friday astatine the PGA Championship.

Scheffler kept doing his champion with the plaything helium had, responding to his lone bogey with a brace of birdies until helium was wrong striking region of 36-hole person Jhonattan Vegas and became a ample beingness connected leaderboard filled with truthful overmuch inexperience successful the majors.

"I similar the presumption I'm successful going into the weekend," Scheffler said aft a 3-under 68 near him lone 3 shots down astatine Quail Hollow.

Vegas had the pb for the archetypal clip successful a large and didn't backmost down. He finished precocious Thursday with 5 birdies connected his past six holes for a 64 and had what felt similar lone 3 hours of sleep. He was tired, but it didn't amusement until the end.

He missed a 3-foot putt connected the 18th spread and took treble bogey. He inactive changeable 70, and his pb remained 2 shots going into the weekend.

"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.

The existent accent was adjacent to Scheffler.

Canadian Taylor Pendrith is tied for 17th astatine sits astatine -3 under, portion chap countrymen Corey Connors (-1) is tied for 36th. 

Schauffele just makes cut

Xander Schauffele was successful information of becoming the archetypal defending champion to miss the chopped successful the PGA Championship since Jimmy Walker successful 2017. He was 2 shots implicit the chopped enactment with 7 holes to play erstwhile helium made 2 birdies and handled the rugged three-hole closing agelong with pars to marque the chopped connected the number.

That's his 64th successful a enactment connected the PGA Tour, the longest streak since Tiger Woods made 142 consecutive cuts from 1998 done 2005.

"The cuts, it's inactive a thing," Schauffele said. "And I truly wanted to marque the play due to the fact that I consciousness similar I'm not playing this bad."

Masters champion Rory McIlroy had 4 birdies done 10 holes and the assemblage was starting to rise the level of noise. But past helium began missing much fairways and making 4 bogeys, including the 18th spread for a 69 to marque the chopped connected the number.

Turns retired XM Sirius PGA Tour Radio reported McIlroy had his operator tested connected Tuesday, it was deemed nonconforming and helium had to usage a backup. He ranks past successful driving accuracy among the 74 players to marque the cut.

McIlroy, who past period completed the vocation Grand Slam astatine the Masters, declined to talk to the media for the 2nd consecutive day.

Scheffler marched on, hitting his stride precocious successful the round, conscionable similar Thursday. He wasn't adjacent alert of McIlroy's aboriginal run.

"When you're retired determination competing, I'm mostly acrophobic astir myself retired there," Scheffler said. "I announcement what's going on, but it's not similar different sport. Like if we were playing hoops and he's hitting a clump of 3s successful my face, I'd astir apt person to adjust."

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.

Mickelson successful contention

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 year. 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.

"Obviously, I privation I was a small spot further up the leaderboard," Scheffler said. "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 different withdrawal. 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.