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Homa in hot pursuit as Vegas clings to Quail Hollow lead
Homa in hot pursuit as Vegas clings to Quail Hollow lead

Straits Times

time16-05-2025

  • Sport
  • Straits Times

Homa in hot pursuit as Vegas clings to Quail Hollow lead

FILE PHOTO: May 4, 2025; McKinney, Texas, USA; Jhonattan Vegas plays his shot from the third tee during the final round of the THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images/File Photo REUTERS CHARLOTTE, North Carolina - Max Homa vaulted into contention at the PGA Championship with a sizzling start to the second round on Friday at Quail Hollow where he joined the pack of golfers breathing down the neck of overnight leader Jhonattan Vegas. Homa, who began the day nine shots back of Vegas, reached the turn in six-under after a remarkable display that included a tap-in eagle at the par-four 14th and chip-in birdie from 49 feet at the 18th. The 34-year-old American, who won his first PGA Tour title at Quail Hollow in 2019, then poured in a 33-foot birdie at the par-three fourth that he followed with a bogey and was six-under on the day through 16 holes. Vegas, the first Venezuelan to hold the lead or co-lead in a major championship, was even-par through nine holes and two shots clear of a trio consisting of J.J. Spaun, Frenchman Matthieu Pavon and Ryan Gerard. Englishman Aaron Rai was three shots back and part of a pack sharing fifth place with five holes to play. Rai, who overcame a bogey-bogey start with three birdies over a four-hole stretch on the front nine to enter the fray, had a chance to move into a share of the lead but missed a nine-foot birdie putt at the 10th. LIV Golf's Tyrrell Hatton also made an early move and was one shot off the lead until a triple-bogey at his ninth hole, the par-four 18th, dropped him into a share of 25th place. Britain's Hatton put his tee shot at 18 into the creek that runs along the fairway, sent his next into thick rough on the right from where his chip towards the green trickled back down a slope and left him spewing profanities. Among the other early starters, U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau was lurking five shots off the pace after two birdies before the turn and was two under on the week with eight holes left in his second round. Australian Cam Davis, who was in a share of second with little-known Gerard and two shots behind Vegas after the first round, dropped back after a shaky start. Gerard was scheduled to tee off at 2:26 p.m. ET (1826 GMT). World number one Scottie Scheffler, whose opening 69 was the lowest score from his high-profile group featuring Rory McIlroy (74) and defending champion Xander Schauffele (72) was due to head out at 1:47 p.m. ET in the same company. McIlroy, playing his first major since his Masters triumph last month freed him from the burden of chasing the career Grand Slam, will need to do some work to avoid missing the cut at the PGA Championship for the first time since 2016. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Overnight leader Vegas gets his second round underway at Quail Hollow
Overnight leader Vegas gets his second round underway at Quail Hollow

Straits Times

time16-05-2025

  • Sport
  • Straits Times

Overnight leader Vegas gets his second round underway at Quail Hollow

FILE PHOTO: May 4, 2025; McKinney, Texas, USA; Jhonattan Vegas plays his shot from the third tee during the final round of the THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images/File Photo REUTERS CHARLOTTE, North Carolina - Overnight leader Jhonattan Vegas got his second round underway on Friday at Quail Hollow where the world's top players will try to muscle their way into contention after an uninspiring start to the PGA Championship. Vegas, the first Venezuelan to hold the lead or co-lead in a major championship, was two shots clear of Australian Cam Davis and little-known American Ryan Gerard after carding a seven-under-par 64 in the opening round. LIV Golf's Tyrrell Hatton, who began the day four shots off the lead, went out early and made a birdie-birdie start to grab a share of second place until a bogey at his fifth hole. Max Homa, who started on the back nine, roared onto the leaderboard as he covered his first six holes in five-under par, a sizzling start that included a tap-in eagle at the par-four 14th that left him five back of Vegas. World number one Scottie Scheffler, whose opening 69 was the lowest score from his high-profile group featuring Rory McIlroy (74) and defending champion Xander Schauffele (72) is due to head out at 1:47 p.m. ET (1747 GMT) in the same company. McIlroy, playing his first major since his Masters triumph last month freed him from the burden of chasing the career Grand Slam, will need to do some work to avoid missing the cut at the PGA Championship for the first time since 2016. Cloudy skies greeted the early starters at a hot and humid Quail Hollow where the forecast for the second round predicts highs near 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32.2 degrees Celsius). Jordan Spieth, looking to breathe life into his hopes of completing the career Grand Slam this week after an opening 76, began the second round with an eagle but was unable to keep it going as he made bogey two holes later. Former world number one Luke Donald, the 47-year-old captain of the European Ryder Cup team who posted the only bogey-free card of the opening round, is part of a group three shots back of Vegas and has an afternoon tee time. Following the opening round, the leaderboard lacked the usual star power seen at golf's blue-riband events as no major champions were among the top eight players while none of the world's top-10 golfers cracked the top 10 at Quail Hollow. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

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