CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The second round of the PGA Championship was featured in the book, and although there seemed to be little talk about the mud ball that dominated the first round discourse, many players were moving, and the leaderboard was one of the most eclectic in recent memory.
Some of the surprising names that dotted the top of the board after Thursday’s opening round failed to provide a proper encore, but the 40-year-old Jonattan Vegas does not fade and currently owns a 54-hole lead. Perhaps the biggest story was the world’s no. 1 Scottie Scheffler shot a 3 and placed himself in prime position to secure the third major.
“Most of me is happy to be able to get closer to the lead. If you’re going to play a 72-hole golf tournament, there’s a few days and stretches of golf you haven’t swinged it the best,” Schaeffler said. “In this long course of tournaments, in the major championship setup, there are some bumps on the road. That’s about how you deal with them.
More than that, Schaeffler remains where he started: as a favorite to bring home the Wanamaker trophy.
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Jonattan Vegas leads at the halfway point. What do you think he has a chance to win?
Schlabach: “Johnny Vegas” probably isn’t a popular winner among golf fans, but he has one of the stories, considering where he started in his career. He is a Venezuelan top junior player and moved to Houston in 2004 when Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez threatened to turn city golf courses into public housing.
When Las Vegas arrived in the United States, he reportedly spoke only 10 English words and carried a worn-out club bag. He’s gotten better enough to win a scholarship at the University of Texas. After turning the pro, he spent two years on the Corn Ferry Tour before winning his first PGA Tour in 2011 with the Bob Hope Classic. Vegas has since won three times, and most recently at the 3M Open in July.
Vegas said he didn’t sleep well before Friday’s round after finishing late the day before. Sleeping on his first lead in the majors probably didn’t help either. He has to sleep on another two-shot lead before the third round. His last major cut was his tie in 57th place in the 2021 US Open. This is just his third start in the Big Four since.
The double bogey six on the 18th hole sullied what was a solid second round for Las Vegas. He finished 1-under 70 and left the course with a two-stroke lead. After getting almost four strokes on the field in the first round, he cooled quite a bit on the second and lost nearly one stroke. His play from the tee to the green remained exceptional.
If Vegas is the wire-to-wire winner of the PGA Championship, I’m unsure.
uggetti: Data Golf gets a 9.4% chance to Vegas. So, even if the two-stroke lead is heading into the weekend, Vegas is just my second favorite. Scottie Scheffler (23.4% chance, 3 shotback) and Bryson Dechambeau (9% chance, 5 shotback) close out the top three.
The fact that Vegas not only hangs in the second round, but is also shot by standard and still holds the lead is impressive. But if I was handicapped his actual chance, I would lean towards 5%, but not below.
“I feel my game is very complete, but I couldn’t put it all together in my major,” Vegas said Friday. “I think I’m just too patient with myself because I’m not playing well in the majors. That’s kind of thing I have to learn what it takes to play well with yourself. Unfortunately, it takes a little longer than usual, but I’m happy to be in this position right now.”
As Mark explained, it would be a great story, but if Vegas were to raise the Wanamaker trophy coming on Sunday, it would be one of the most unlikely major wins we’ve seen, as Jimmy Walker did it with the PGA in 2017. Perhaps even more unlikely.
Which players outside the top 10 do you think can win?
Schlabach: I chose Dedanbaugh to win before the tournament began, but he is still within strike distance at 3 under. The Liv Golf League captain bouncing off a uniform 71 in the first round, posting a 3-under 68 on Friday. He is tied to a 17th five-stroke behind Vegas.
Deccanbo hits the ball a long way with Quail Hollow. He leads the field with mileage (331.6 yards) and gets the strokes he gets from the tee. His putting was, of course, solid. However, Deccanbeau’s ironplay is still a little farther away like the Masters, and he’s not happy with his chipping (he lost two strokes to two strokes on Thursday, making it a bit better).
“I have to be very accurate this week with the irons. We all know how good my wedges are, so that’s a little more difficult for me,” Deccanbeau said. “But it’s fine.
“It’s a great test. You need to wear a little more and continue playing like I do. Right now, under 7, 8, or maybe I’ll be on par.
uggetti: As with this, it could be anyone’s game when there are plenty of big names lurking outside the top 10 and the tournament still appears to be relatively open.
Even so, I think the cream will continue to rise up even if there is a hollow quail course. And despite his recent struggles at several major championships, perhaps he’s not as good at doing that as John Rahm. The Spaniard is packing two quiet, but very solid golf together, sitting in a six-shot behind 2 under, Vegas, heading for the weekend.
“I think I’m in a good position,” Rahm said. “In addition to the fact that I feel better and feel more confident in my swing, I also had lots of good swings out there today, giving myself plenty of opportunities.”
The majors’ discourse on Rahm has revolved around what he can’t compete since winning the Masters in 2023, but it’s easy to forget that at the time he was one of the most consistent and dominant players in the game. He continues to score top 10 finishes in LIV, but you want to measure them. It’s no surprise to see him running at the top this weekend. He could use it.
Is it still too far to fight?
uggetti: Is it too many to say that anyone who has made a cut can run? Perhaps, however, this setup, like many PGAs in the past, brings the leaderboard quite close. Even if Vegas is 8 under, players like Morikawa (par), Rory McIlroy, and Xander Schauffele (1 or higher) will be lowered and run. As far as I’m concerned, the true leader of the tournament right now is Schaeffler at 5 under, but that means Schaeffler needs to stop and that’s also unlikely. Players like Morikawa, Schaufele and McIlroy will need to take photos to take the latest shots from the mid-60s, but that’s not from the realm of possibilities.
The flatter opinion is that one under is probably too far. Having four shots behind Schaeffler and seven shots behind the leader provides a tall task.
Who is your choice heading towards this weekend?
Schlabach: I chose Scotty after the first round and he had a stroke of Friday at a 3-under 68. He improved on almost every metric in the second round, except for driving (6 out of 14 fairways hit).
“I like the position I go on weekends,” Schaeffler said. “Obviously I wish I had raised the leaderboard a little bit higher. I think I’ve done a lot from the game over the last few days. As the round continues, my swing continues to improve and I’m able to hit some key shots and look forward to the weekend.”
The 2022 US Open winner, Matt Fitzpatrick is the only other golfer in the top 10 to win the majors. Vegas, Matieu Pavon, Michael Solbjornsen, Alex Smalley and Sam Stevens are not holding back Schaeffler when he accused him.
uggetti: Schaeffler feels inevitable, especially considering he doesn’t have the rounds he has played like the unquestionable No. 1 player in the world yet. But a part of me is coming back to Bryson. He’s far from perfect this week, clearly fighting his approach game (77th on the field), but it appears that there’s a round that’s all clicking. The drive remains an incredible weapon and he needs to keep it fairway more often.
Was the biggest disappointment the player missing the cut?
Schlabach: Many of the world’s best golfers, Justin Thomas (3 over), Matsuyama Hideki (3 over), Ludwig Åberg (3 over), Justin Rose (9 over), and Russell Henry (10 over), are not on Quiz Hollow on the weekend, so there are many solid options.
I’d probably go to JT because I thought he had a real chance to make a fuss this week. He won the RBC Heritage three weeks ago and won his first major at the 2017 PGA Championship with Quazlo Hollow.
Thomas hit 13 of 28 fairways (4 of 14 in the first round) and 16 of 36 greens. He made nine birdies, but he made too many mistakes.
uggetti: I’ll go with Aberg. He was coming up and down this week, but it still seemed Quail Hollow would set up well for his game. Instead, he finished 145th with the strokes he acquired: driving, 86th. The sample size is small, perhaps too high, the bar is too high, but I’ve missed two cuts in Aberg’s two PGA Championship appearances.
