A competitive opening round yielded a crowded list of names atop the leaderboard as the second round of the PGA Championship got underway Friday at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York.
LIV Golf star Bryson DeChambeau took the clubhouse lead on Thursday at 4-under 66. However, an early-morning frost delay prevented several golfers with late-afternoon tee times from completing their rounds. When play ultimately was suspended due to darkness, PGA Tour newcomer Eric Cole stood atop the leaderboard at five under par through 14 holes.
ROUND 1 COVERAGE: Newcomer Eric Cole on top as play is suspended
DeChambeau reclaimed the lead without picking up a club. Cole double-bogeyed his first hole of the morning, falling into a tie for second with Corey Conners, Dustin Johnson and Scottie Scheffler at 3-under.
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Late-round drama for Phil Mickelson
Struggling to make the 36-hole cut, six-time major champion Phil Mickelson nearly committed a costly rules violation when he hit his tee shot on the sixth hole into the same swamp that caused Tom Kim so much trouble in Thursday’s opening round.
After taking a drop but before hitting his third shot, Mickelson was stopped by a rules official who questioned the placement of the ball.
The 2021 PGA champion asserted that he should be allowed to take two clublengths of relief from the ball’s flight path into the hazard. That would have left him a shot from the edge of the fairway. But after a second rules official was called in, it was determined that Mickelson was only entitled to one clublength, putting his ball in the first cut of the rough.
Hitting a fairway wood from 247 yards into the par 5, he missed the green to the left − flirting with the dangerous Allen Creek. The ball stuck in the rough and didn’t kick into the water, but his chip came up short and rolled back down the ridge running through the middle of the green.
He eventually two-putted for double bogey, taking him from 3-over to 5-over par for the tournament with three holes to play in his round. The projected cut line is at 4-over.
Crews at Oak Hill help save a family of ducks
With massive crowds arriving at Oak Hill Country Club — a typically serene setting — pardon a family of ducks for not understanding what all the buzz was about on Friday morning.
The ducks, which were settling in near the clubhouse at the storied course, needed to be whisked away during the second round of play at the PGA Championship.
A dozen ducklings were rounded up, but originally the family matriarch wasn’t willing to tag along. Eventually, they escorted their elder to the creek and the family swam away, giving a little space to the event’s patrons.
Justin Rose makes his move to the top
With first-round leader Bryson DeChambeau not scheduled to tee off until the afternoon, Englishman Justin Rose rode a hot start Friday morning to pull into a tie for the lead.
Rose, the 2013 U.S. Open champion and gold medalist at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics, birdied three of his first seven holes in the second round to match DeChambeau at four under for the tournament.
After completing his opening round early Friday morning, Rose rolled in a double-breaking putt on No. 10 to start his second round, then holed a 20-footer for birdie on 12 and drained another lengthy birdie putt on 16 to grab a share of the lead.
He finished his opening nine with a bogey on 18 to drop one stroke off the pace.
Rose won his 11th PGA tour event at Pebble Beach in February. He has four top-10 finishes at the PGA and tied for 13th at Southern Hills last year.
Club pro Michael Block off to fast start, then struggles
The reigning PGA of America Professional Player of the Year got off to a quick start in Round 2 at Oak Hill.
Michael Block, the 46-year-old head professional at Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club in Mission Viejo, California, birdied his first hole of the day to move into a tie for second place behind leader Bryson DeChambeau. He then birded his third and fifth hole, before faltering.
Block found himself in the company of such notables as Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose (3-under after his first six holes today) and Scottie Scheffler early in the second round of the PGA Championship.
Block ended up shooting a second consecutive round of even-par 70 — which he said was his goal — ensuring that he’ll make the 36-hole cut.
“Nothing can go wrong from this point forward,” Block told ESPN’s TV broadcast following his round. “I can’t tell you how happy that makes me.”
One of the endearing features of this major is that several spots in the field are reserved for club pros like Block — and occasionally they make some noise, especially in the early rounds. PGATour.com notes Block has been named the Southern California PGA Player of the Year in nine of the last 10 years (2013-2022, with the exception being 2017). He’s also a past California State Open champion.
The last PGA Professional to finish among the top 40 for the entire championship was Steve Schneiter, who tied for 40th in 2005 at Baltusrol.
First round of PGA Championship officially complete
PGA Tour newcomer Eric Cole held the overnight lead after making it through 14 holes at 5-under-par during a weather-delayed opening round at Oak Hill. However, when he returned to the course early Friday, Cole found the water on the sixth hole and wound up with a double-bogey, dropping him a shot behind clubhouse leader Bryson DeChambeau.
Playing in his second career major, Cole finished with three consecutive pars to conclude his round of 3-under 67.
With the 33 other golfers − including Phil Mickelson, Rickie Fowler and Patrick Cantlay − who were left on the course as darkness suspended play Thursday finishing up, the first round is now in the books.
Two-time PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas shot a 2-over 72 as he began his title defense.
What is the weather forecast for Friday?
After the start of the first round was delayed by nearly two hours due to early morning frost, the forecast for Friday should be much improved.
The second round is scheduled to begin under cloudy skies with temperatures in the high-50s, according to weather.com. Temperatures will climb into the mid-70s around lunchtime, making for pleasant conditions in the afternoon.
DeChambeau dazzles in opening round
Bryson DeChambeau told reporters on Thursday he couldn’t have drawn up a better round of golf, finishing his first 18 holes with a 4-under 66.
“It’s a fantastic round of golf at Oak Hill. It’s a prestigious place. Very difficult golf course,” DeChambeau said. “Luckily, I was able to play some really good golf, hit a lot of fairways, did my job and made some putts. … Figured out a couple things this week, and it certainly paid off today.”
The 2020 U.S. Open champion hit nine of 14 fairways off the tee and 15 of 18 greens in regulation. He also averaged 347 yards per tee shot.
— David Dusek, Golfweek
Rough round for Rahm
Coming in as one of the two favorites, Jon Rahm said during his press conference leading up to the 105th PGA Championship that he was looking to “ride the wave” of recent success, hoping to follow a pair of recent wins at the Genesis and the Masters with similar success in Western New York.
But the wave fizzled out on Thursday at Oak Hill Country Club.
Rahm finished the first round with a 6-over 76, a full 10 shots behind early leader Bryson DeChambeau when he finished.
— Tim Schmitt, Golfweek
Tom Kim goes viral after getting completely covered in mud
Oak Hill Country Club is known for Allen Creek running through the course.
It’s a natural hazard intended to swallow golf balls … not actual golfers. Tom Kim played the creek differently than most at the PGA Championship on Thursday.
Kim was told his ball crossed the water and that he could play the ball if he found it. He stepped in the swampy creek bed, sank like quicksand and was covered in mud.
“As soon as I went in, it was kind of sketch,” Kim said in his post-round interview on ESPN. “It’s a major championship I’m fighting for every single stroke. Then it got dark. Once my foot went in, there was no looking back.”
— Ryan Miller, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
Friday’s tee times at Oak Hill Country Club
Half the field will start at hole No. 1, the other half on No. 10. The half that will start on the first hole started on the back nine in the first round. The half that will start on the 10th hole started on the first hole on Thurdsay.
The morning tee times will begin at 7 a.m. ET − which is also when the 11 groups that did not finish play on Thursday will complete their first rounds − and run through 9:12 a.m. ET with 11-minute intervals between each group. The afternoon tee times will start at 12:30 p.m. ET and run through 2:42 p.m. ET.
Here are the tee times for the second round of the 2023 PGA Championship. All times Eastern.
Hole No. 1
- 7:00 a.m.: Sam Ryder, Longwood, FL; Gabe Reynolds, Dallas, TX; Brandon Wu, Scarsdale, NY
- 7:11 a.m.: Sadom Kaewkanjana, Thailand; Ben Kern, Grove City, OH; Thorbjorn Olesen, Denmark
- 7:22 a.m.: Webb Simpson, Charlotte, NC; Y.E. Yang, Republic of Korea; Danny Willett, England
- 7:33 a.m.: Sepp Straka, Austria; Harris English, Sea Island, GA; Robert Macintyre, Scotland
- 7:44 a.m.: Thomas Pieters, Belgium; Keith Mitchell, St. Simons Island, GA; Pablo Larrazabal, Spain
- 7:55 a.m.: Lucas Herbert, Australia; Brian Harman, St. Simons Island, GA; Callum Shinkwin, England
- 8:06 a.m.: Tom Kim, Republic of Korea; Sam Burns, Shreveport, LA; Abraham Ancer, Mexico
- 8:17 a.m.: Sungjae Im, Republic of Korea; Chris Kirk, Athena, GA; Seamus Power, Ireland
- 8:28 a.m.: Si Woo Kim, Republic of Korea; Stephan Jaeger, Chattanooga, TN; Anirban Lahiri, India
- 8:39 a.m.: Victor Perez, France; Aaron Wise, Ellerbe, NC; Jordan Smith, England
- 8:50 a.m.: Chris Sanger, Red Hook, NY; J.J. Spaun, Scottsdale, AZ; David Micheluzzi, Australia
- 9:01 a.m.: Thomas Detry, Belgium; J.J. Killeen, Lubbock, TX; Matt Wallace, England
- 9:12 a.m.: Nick Hardy, Northbrook, IL; Greg Koch, Orlando, FL; Eric Cole, Delray Beach, FL
- 12:30 p.m.: Trey Mullinax, Birmingham, AL; Josh Speight, Locust Hill, VA; Kazuki Higa, Japan
- 12:41 p.m.: Adam Schenk, Vincennes, IN; Colin Inglis, Creswell, OR; Thriston Lawrence, South Africa
- 12:52 p.m.: Min Woo Lee, Australia; Andrew Putnam, University Place, WA; Emiliano Grillo, Argentina
- 1:03 p.m.: Harold Varner III, Gastonia, NC; Scott Stallings, Oak Ridge, TN; Nicolai Hojgaard, Denmark
- 1:14 p.m.: Steve Holmes, Simi Valley, CA; Adrian Otaegui, Spain; Davis Riley, Hattiesburg, MS
- 1:25 p.m.: Scottie Scheffler, Dallas, TX; Brooks Koepka, West Palm Beach, FL; Gary Woodland, Topeka, KS
- 1:36 p.m.: Rory McIlroy, Northern Ireland; Justin Thomas, Louisville, KY; Collin Morikawa, La Canada, CA
- 1:47 p.m.: Shane Lowry, Ireland; Jordan Spieth, Dallas, TX; Viktor Hovland, Norway
- 1:58 p.m.: Matthew Fitzpatrick, England; Cameron Smith, Australia; Jon Rahm, Spain
- 2:09 p.m.: Luke Donald, England; Adrian Meronk, Poland; Yannik Paul, Germany
- 2:20 p.m.: Kenny Pigman, Norco, CA; Davis Thompson, St. Simons Island, GA; Maverick McNealy, Las Vegas, NV
- 2:31 p.m.: Keegan Bradley, Woodstock, VT; Jason Day, Australia; Bryson DeChambeau, Dallas, TX
- 2:42 p.m.: Jesse Droemer, Houston, TX; Matt NeSmith, Aiken, SC; Rikuya Hoshino, Japan
Hole No. 10
- 7:05 a.m.: Matt Cahill, Palm Beach Gardens, FL; Taylor Montgomery, Las Vegas, NV; Cam Davis, Australia
- 7:16 a.m.: Michael Block, Mission Viejo, CA; Hayden Buckley, Tupelo, MS; Taylor Pendrith, Canada
- 7:27 a.m.: Alex Beach, Stillwater, OK; Brendon Todd, Watkinsville, GA; Sihwan Kim, Las Vegas, NV
- 7:38 a.m.: Patrick Reed, The Woodlands, TX; Rasmus Hojgaard, Denmark; Nick Taylor, Canada
- 7:49 a.m.: Christiaan Bezuidenhout, South Africa; John Somers, Brooksville, FL; Chez Reavie, Scottsdale, AZ
- 8:00 a.m.: Tommy Fleetwood, England; Cameron Young, Scarborough, NY; Hideki Matsuyama, Japan
- 8:11 a.m.: Adam Scott, Australia; Max Homa, Valencia, CA; Tony Finau, Lehi, UT
- 8:22 a.m.: Xander Schauffele, San Diego, CA; Tyrrell Hatton, England; Dustin Johnson, Jupiter, FL
- 8:33 a.m.: Patrick Cantlay, Jupiter, FL; Rickie Fowler, Murrieta, CA; Phil Mickelson, Rancho Santa Fe, CA
- 8:44 a.m.: Alex Smalley, Greensboro, NC; Russell Henley, Columbus, GA; Mito Pereira, Chile
- 8:55 a.m.: Adam Hadwin, Canada; Matt Kuchar, Jupiter, FL; Talor Gooch, Edmond, OK
- 9:06 a.m.: Justin Rose, England; Billy Horschel, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL; Francesco Molinari, Italy
- 9:17 a.m.: Russell Grove, Coeur d’Alene, ID; Patrick Rodgers, Jupiter, FL; Ben Taylor, England
- 12:25 p.m.: Shaun Micheel, Collierville, TN; Braden Shattuck, Aston, PA; Steven Alker, New Zealand
- 12:36 p.m.: Ben Griffin, Chapel Hill, NC; Chris French, Rockford, IL; Joel Dahmen, Scottsdale, AZ
- 12:47 p.m.: Wyatt Worthington II, Reynoldsburg, OH; Nico Echavarria, Colombia; Wyndham Clark, Denver, CO
- 12:58 p.m.: Tom Hoge, Fort Worth, TX; Ryan Fox, New Zealand; K.H. Lee, Republic of Korea
- 1:09 p.m.: Paul Casey, England; Adam Svensson, Canada; Beau Hossler, Mission Viejo, CA
- 1:20 p.m.: Zach Johnson, Cedar Rapids, IA; Kurt Kitayama, Las Vegas, NV; Sahith Theegala, Houston, TX
- 1:31 p.m.: Corey Conners, Canada; Ockie Strydom, South Africa; Joaquin Niemann, Chile
- 1:42 p.m.: Kevin Kisner, Aiken, SC; Jimmy Walker, San Antonio, TX; Padraig Harrington, Ireland
- 1:53 p.m.: Alex Noren, Sweden; J.T. Poston, Sea Island, GA; Mackenzie Hughes, Canada
- 2:04 p.m.: Lee Hodges, Athens, AL; Callum Tarren, England; David Lingmerth, Sweden
- 2:15 p.m.: Taylor Moore, Edmond, OK; Denny McCarthy, Jupiter, FL; Brendan Steele, Idyllwild, CA
- 2:26 p.m.: Jeremy Wells, Estero, FL; Justin Suh, San Jose, CA; Adri Arnaus, Spain
- 2:37 p.m.: Anthony Cordes, Johns Creek, GA; Mark Hubbard, The Woodlands, TX; Dean Burmester, South Africa
How to watch PGA Championship second round
ESPN+ has coverage of the second round from 7 a.m.-1 p.m. ET. The broadcast shifts to ESPN from 1 p.m.-7 p.m. ET.
An alternate telecast with Matty and the Caddie will be available on ESPN from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. ET and ESPN2 from 1-3 p.m ET
The tournament can be livestreamed on:
Who are the PGA Championship announcers?
Scott Van Pelt will anchor live coverage on ESPN and ESPN+ and will be joined for analysis by former world No. 1 golfer David Duval. Hole announcers are Curtis Strange, Bob Wischusen and David Fleming. On-course reporters will be Andy North, Billy Kratzert, Suzy Whaley, Ken Brown and John Maginnes.
Is Tiger Woods playing in the PGA Championship?
No. Woods had to withdraw from the Masters due to an ankle injury which later required surgery, likely ending his 2023 season.
Get to know PGA Championship course
Oak Hill Country Club’s East Course is regarded as one of top golf courses in America. It’s also one of the most challenging. The East Course is built around part of Allen Creek, which weaves a hazard through half of the holes. The par-70 course plays 7,394 yards. Here’s a hole-by-hole bird’s-eye view.
Hole by hole distances and par
- No. 1, 460 yards, par 4
- No. 2, 405 yards, par 4
- No. 3, 230 yards, par 3
- No. 4, 615 yards, par 5
- No. 5, 180 yards, par 3
- No. 6, 503 yards, par 4
- No. 7, 461 yards, par 4
- No. 8, 429 yards, par 4
- No. 9, 482 yards, par 4
- No. 10, 430 yards, par 4
- No. 11, 245 yards, par 3
- No. 12, 399 yards, par 4
- No. 13, 623 yards, par 5
- No. 14, 320 yards, par 4
- No. 15, 155 yards, par 3
- No. 16, 458 yards, par 4
- No. 17, 502 yards, par 4
- No. 18, 497 yards, par 4
— Ryan Miller, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
