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Rory Mcilroy looks set to miss the cut at the 2023 Players Championship after two rounds to forget at the event. After storms forced play to halt yesterday, action resumed this morning but the Northern Irishman will need to make four shots up over his final five holes if he is to continue playing at TPC Sawgrass over the weekend.
After an opening round of 76, Mcilroy knew that he needed to perform well on Friday if he was to make it through to the weekend but never really got going. He started off his round with five consecutive pars before a double bogey on the sixth left him six over par for the week.
Although Mcilroy managed to sink a 20-foot birdie on the seventh hole, he couldn’t make any more shots up before a storm brought play to a close early. He is currently still five over par after 14 holes, meaning his chances of making the projected cut of +1 are virtually gone.
Another notable absentee this weekend will be Jon Rahm, who has withdrawn from the event due to illness. It means the door is wide open for Scottie Scheffler to reclaim the world number one spot and he is going about his work nicely on -6 for the week.
Jon Rahm has withdrawn from @THEPLAYERSChamp due to illness. pic.twitter.com/hgYdt5HK1Y
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 10, 2023
Adam Svenson leads the way
Canadian, Adam Svenson is currently at the top of the leaderboard on -8. His opening effort of 68 has been followed up by a potentially even better second round. He is currently four under par but still has four more holes to play.
In second place is South African, Christiaan Bezuidenhout. The 28-year-old has held the lead at various points throughout the second round but is currently one shot back of Svensson. He has enjoyed four birdies so far in round two, after starting on the back nine, but dropped a shot this morning on his 16th hole to leave him on -7.
Alongside Scottie Scheffler on -6 are Ben Griffin and Min-Woo-Lee who have both already finished for the day. Considering the stormy conditions in Florida, they may find themselves closer to the top of the leaderboard by the time those above them are back in the clubhouse.
Collin Morikawa and Chad Ramey, the two men who occupied the top two spots on the leaderboard after round one, will be disappointed with how they have performed in their second round. Ramey is currently three-over par for his round while Morikawa is two-over par. It means both men are tied for 6th, three shots behind the leader.
A stack of names to miss the weekend
While Mcilroy has the rest of his second round to try and salvage his place at the tournament, there are already a number of huge names confirmed to have missed the projected cut.
Justin Thomas, the reigning PGA Champion, is back in the clubhouse with a score of +2 meaning he will need the cut line to drop a shot if he is to play any golf this weekend. Alongside him on +2 are Tony Finau and Shane Lowry while last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational winner, Kurt Kitayama, has finished on +5.
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