Scottie Scheffler Is Two Back at the PGA Championship. That Should Terrify Everyone.

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After 36 holes at Aronimink, the PGA Championship has given us everything we could have asked for heading into the weekend. Surprise leaders. Former champions lurking. A grand slam chase still alive. Historic numbers. And a Sunday forecast that could change everything.

Here is where things stand — and why the next two rounds at Aronimink are going to be must-watch golf.

Alex Smalley and Maverick McNealy are tied for the lead at four under par. Two names nobody had circled heading into this week. Two players who have never been in this position at a major championship. McNealy said it himself after his round — his putter is his best weapon. And at a golf course where the greens have been the great equalizer all week, that matters enormously. Getting to the lead is one thing. Holding it over 36 holes on a major championship weekend with the best players in the world breathing down your neck is something else entirely.

And nobody is breathing down their neck quite like Scottie Scheffler.

Scottie is two back. He has four majors. He is trying to win back-to-back PGA Championships — something only Brooks Koepka and Tiger Woods have done in the modern era. He was the first player in his career to share the 36-hole lead at a major after round one on Thursday. He battled difficult morning conditions on Friday and still came back. He is right where he wants to be. Anyone who has watched Scottie Scheffler play golf over the last three years knows exactly what two back with 36 holes to play means.

Chris Gotterup is one back. One of Trey’s picks heading into the week. A Jersey kid completely comfortable slugging it out in Philadelphia conditions. Cam Young is two back. Justin Thomas — a two-time PGA Championship winner — is two back. Hideki Matsuyama is right there. And Rory McIlroy, who fell apart in round one with five bogeys in his last six holes, bounced back with a 67 on Friday. That 67 was his 43rd round of 67 or better at a major championship. The only player in history with more is Tiger Woods with 48. Rory is back in it.

Then there is the number that puts all of this in context. Per Justin Ray — 45 of the last 50 men’s major champions were within four shots of the lead after 36 holes. That means the field is effectively down to 28 players. And within those 28 players are some of the most compelling storylines in golf right now.

Jordan Spieth is at plus one — just outside that window but not out of it. This is his 10th attempt to complete the career grand slam. Rory took 10 attempts before he finally won the Masters. The door is not closed.

The weather sealed it. Whatever difficult conditions were coming — the howling 30-mile-an-hour winds, the freezing morning temperatures that turned Friday’s early wave into a survival test — that is behind us now. The weekend is supposed to be warm. Temperatures could hit 90 degrees on Sunday afternoon outside Philadelphia. Those greens that were slightly receptive on Friday afternoon are going to get firm and fast. The PGA Championship played like a US Open through the first two rounds. The weekend could be a completely different test.

The stage is set. The storylines are loaded. And Scottie Scheffler is two back. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com

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