It’s a story as old as a fourth grader, one golf fans know well: Rory McIlroy and The Search for the Elusive Fifth Major. It’s in its 10th printing, dating back to 2015 when, after winning the 2014 Open Championship and PGA Championship, McIlroy took aim at the career Grand Slam and a fifth major victory at Augusta.
Nearly a full decade later, he’s still in search of both. That, of course, was the narrative again today as he started the second round of the U.S. Open with a share of the lead. McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay each posted a 5-under 65 on Thursday to take a one-shot lead over the field.
McIlroy, like plenty of others in the early wave on Friday, just hung in there. He finished with a 2-over 72, thanks to a bogey at the last, which kept him within two shots of the lead as he hit the clubhouse.
Though McIlroy stumbled a bit, Thomas Detry was locked in. He matched Cantlay at 5-under quickly after making the turn thanks to a huge putting day, and then he briefly took the solo lead on his back nine. Bryson DeChambeau remained in the mix after a rollercoaster start, too. He stuck his approach at the 18th right next to the cup for a final birdie, which moved him to 4-under for the week.
Cantlay went off in the afternoon wave. Tiger Woods is in the late wave, too, though he’ll need a solid day to make the cut after a rough opening start. The top 60 and ties will make it into the weekend. Scottie Scheffler, who has been nothing short of dominant all season, is looking at his first missed cut in 672 days.
Oh, and Sepp Straka pulled off the first hole-in-one of the week at Pinehurst on Friday morning.
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Detry falls back
Well, Thomas Detry’s solo lead was short-lived. He just bogeyed the par-3 6th, which dropped him back to 5-under the week. Patrick Cantlay, who just teed off, is the co-leader once again.
Scottie Scheffler sweating in the clubhouse
Friday was a rough one for the world’s top-ranked golfer. He’s now at risk of missing the cut for the first time in what feels like forever.
More from Jay Busbee on the ground at Pinehurst:
Click the photo to read more about Scottie Scheffler’s rough outing on Friday at Pinehurst. (AP/Matt York)
Tiger Woods is off
Tiger Woods is off and running at Pinehurst. He’s starting right around the projected cut line after his 4-over 74 on Thursday.
Who is Thomas Detry?
A great explainer on the new solo leader at Pinehurst.
🇧🇪 From Brussels, Belgium 🏌️♂️ Played college golf at the University of Illinois, earning 2015 Big Ten Player of the Year and winning medalist honors at the 2016 Big Ten Conference Championship ⛳️ Broke the world record for… pic.twitter.com/OBnb8HWSqg
He left an eagle putt short, but that set up a very easy birdie look for Thomas Detry at the par-5 5th. He’s now the solo leader at the U.S. Open.
Bryson finishes strong
That was a huge finish for Bryson DeChambeau. He birdied the 18th to finish his 1-under 69, which pushed him into second as he enters the clubhouse.
The afternoon wave is about to tee off, but DeChambeau is just a shot back.
Scottie Scheffler likely to miss the cut
Scottie Scheffler just finished with a 4-over 74, which drops him to 5-over on the week. It was his third straight round over par, which is something that hasn’t happened since 2020.
If he can’t sneak into the weekend with some help from the afternoon wave, he’ll miss his first cut in 672 days.
Rory McIlroy drops 2 back
Rory just pushed a par putt at the 9th, so he’ll finish with a 2-over 72 today. Not great, considering what he posted yesterday, but he’s still within two shots of the lead entering the clubhouse.
Sam Bairstow’s wild recovery
Sam Bairstow fired a 14-over 84 to kick off the U.S. Open on Thursday.
Today, he jumped up 17 shots with his 3-under 67. That matches the largest improvement from Round 1 to Round 2 at the major in the last 40 years.
Scottie Scheffler just doubled the par-5 5th, and now sits at 5-over. He hasn’t missed the cut anywhere since 2022.
Viktor Hovland’s cut push
It’s going to take a bit more, but Viktor Hovland is giving himself a chance to make it into the weekend. He’s 5-over now, just outside the projected cutline at 3-over.
Remember, the top 60 and ties make the cut.
Bryson’s back in it
After a rollercoaster start, Bryson DeChambeau seems back on track. He’s now sank back-to-back birdie putts to get to 4-under, which has him tied up with Rory McIlroy once again.
Tyrrell Hatton’s awful luck
Tyrrell Hatton couldn’t have landed this approach much closer to the cup. And, well …
Xander is locked in
Xander Schauffele is still two shots off the lead with five holes to go, but he’s come out firing this morning at Pinehurst.
Xander Schauffele is dialed with his iron play today, leading the early wave in round 2 currently in strokes gained approach.
Schauffele has already hit more greens in regulation today (9-for-13) than he did in all of the opening round (8-for-18).
