Scheffler stays – Scottie Scheffler battled back to shoot 71, while Justin Rose and Shane Lowry were among the major names sharply humbled during the PGA Championship second round at Aronimink in Philadelphia.
When the early groups walked off the par-threes and par-fives at Aronimink. the story was already written: this was a PGA Championship day built for elite golfers to feel very human.. The second round delivered a steady stream of ugly moments. from drives that ended in trouble to tee shots launched into hazards. while Scottie Scheffler fought to stay within reach despite a rough start.
Justin Rose provided a headline example of the carnage, ballooning a drive behind the bins on the 13th hole en route to a 73. Shane Lowry was even more severe, flat-out shanking his tee shot on the par-three 17th into a lake. He signed for 76 and slid from contention to four over for the tournament.
There was no shortage of other jolts.. Matt Fitzpatrick four-putted on the 14th in a 72. and the course’s conditions were ruthless enough to make even small mistakes feel career-threatening.. One of the most striking themes from players on the day was the way certain pin positions combined with the setup to punish badly.
Scheffler. the world No 1 and a man who had started the round in a share of the lead. endured the kind of wobble that would have ended most days for most players.. Starting on the 10th, he had already fallen three bogeys deep by the time he had completed four holes.. He recovered to card a 71 that left him two under, but he didn’t leave his frustrations in the bag.
Breaking character after his round. Scheffler criticised what he called the hardest set of pins he has seen since he joined the tour.. He said: ‘Hardest set of pin locations that I’ve seen since I’ve been on tour’.. Then he added a sharper detail on the 14th. saying: ‘Most of the pins today were. I mean. kind of absurd.. The one on 14 was probably the hardest pin that I’ve seen in a long time just because there’s literally a spine and they’re like. “Oh. we’ll just put the pin right on top of it”.’
The debate over fairness wasn’t limited to Scheffler.. The course. described as fusing US Open-style rough. Open Championship winds. and huge greens that have been producing more three-putts than Augusta National. has also drawn broader questions about how punishing the pin placements have been—especially for holes where the terrain rises into awkward angles.
For some, it was still possible to post something exceptional despite the chaos.. The early wind had gusted as strong as 30mph. and the speed on the sloped putting surfaces made the scoring brutal.. In that kind of environment, Chris Gotterup’s 65 stood out as exceptional in the worst conditions.. Hideki Matsuyama earned similar credit, moving to three under after a 67.. Alex Smalley’s 69 set the initial clubhouse lead on four under.
There was a sense that later starters might at least get a marginal advantage, including Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau, after the earlier groups had taken the tough end of the draw. Yet for the players already on the course early, it was all about surviving their own battles.
Scheffler’s task was particularly steep because his second lap produced a sequence of problems before the recovery took hold.. After struggling through his first nine holes on the comeback. it took him eight holes to find a birdie again. arriving on the 17th.. By that point, he had already conceded a hat-trick of bogeys.
Like McIlroy after his first-round struggles, Scheffler’s bounce-back reflected a resilience that has become his calling card. When his mood threatened to swing the wrong way, he battled through anyway, offsetting bogeys with timely birdies on the fourth and ninth.
Not every notable name found the same escape route. Justin Thomas—twice a winner at this venue—shot a second 69 to sit two under, but he was put on the clock and argued with officials.
Patrick Reed briefly threatened to match Scheffler’s position in the lead. A five-footer on the fourth carried him to three under and levelled him with six others at the top of the leaderboard. Then the day turned for him, with a bogey on the sixth followed by eight straight pars.
Reed’s most damaging stretch came at the 15th.. He missed the green by barely two yards with an approach. but the ball buried in the dense rough left him unable to get up-and-down quickly enough to avoid damage.. He bogeyed the hole, then suffered another at 16.. His round of 72 pulled him back to level par.
By the time the early narrative of humiliation had been established. the course at Aronimink had already delivered its message: in this PGA Championship. even the best can be reduced to scrambling. arguing. and hoping the bounce comes their way—while Scheffler’s survival offered the only calm headline in a day defined by carnage.
PGA Championship Scottie Scheffler Justin Rose Shane Lowry Aronimink Golf Club Rory McIlroy Bryson DeChambeau Patrick Reed Hideki Matsuyama