The blustery conditions played havoc with Rory McIlroy’s curly hair but he straightened himself superbly and is pointed in the right direction for 94th PGA Championship glory at Kiawah Island.
On a day better suited for flying kites or wind-surfing it was a case of battening down the hatches and holding on as near 35 mph winds buffeted the exposed Ocean Course.
McIlroy walked from the course with a three over par 75 to be among the leading six players at two under par and just two behind the clubhouse leading duo of former PGA champions, Vijay Singh (69) and Tiger Woods (71) tied on four under par.
And while history will now record McIlroy’s round as his highest in 14 rounds of the PGA Championship the conditiosn made for the average score on day two to be closer to 77.
“It was very tough,” he said.
“We’ve been practicing all week on this range, which the wind has been right‑to‑left, and then the first few holes were like that but then you turn through that stretch,6 through 13, and every hole, the wind is off the left.
“It took a little bit of adjusting to; I missed a few balls right at the start but was able to get into it.
” When I turned for home, it was nice to make a couple birdies.
“So, it could have been a couple shots better, of course, but I limited the damage as much as I could, and I’m in a good position going into the weekend so I I can’t really ask for much more.
“It was unfortunate to give that shot straight back after birdieing 14 but it was good that I was able to get it back again on the par 5 at the next.
“But the main thing is you can’t get aggressive with this weather.
“You don’t even care where the pin is, you just try to hit it on the green somewhere. I’ll just keep playing how I am and see how this thing unfolds. I don’t know if the wind will be quite the same tomorrow but if it is, it’s going to be another tough day and another long grind.”
And McIlroy’s thoughts now lying just two behind and with two rounds to play.
“Yeah, I feel good just two behind,” he said.
“So anything can happen over 36 holes, especially in weather like this, so I’m pleased going into the weekend.
“I said at the start of the week that I wanted to just give myself a chance going into Sunday and if I have a solid one tomorrow, I’ll hopefully be able to do that.”
