Scottie Scheffler within striking distance of lead at PGA Championship

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Scottie Scheffler didn’t seem particularly enthused or upset with his second-round 68 at Quail Hollow.

By Scheffler’s standards, it was fine. In truth, it’s felt like a pretty run-of-the-mill two days at the PGA Championship for the world No. 1. His swing has been hit-or-miss. So has the putter.

Yet after two rounds, only four golfers are ahead of Scottie Scheffler on the leaderboard. That should be worrisome for the rest of the field at Quail Hollow. Scheffler is in the thick of contention at a major championship and he still has his best punch to throw.

At 5-under, Scheffler sits just three shots back of 36-hole leader Jhonattan Vegas and one back of Matthieu Pavon, Matt Fitzpatrick and Si Woo Kim.

Scheffler’s lurking, but he might not be for much longer.

"I didn't really feel like I made very many good swings today until probably the 14th hole,” said Scheffler, who, despite the pessimism, only made one bogey in his second loop around Quail Hollow. “And I was able to kind of put some stuff together coming down the stretch. I bounced back really well I felt like most of the day.”

Scheffler shot a ho-hum 2-under on the front nine, grabbing birdies at the third and eighth holes and never forcing himself to make more than a 6-footer for par. He failed to birdie the par-5 10th, then dropped a shot on 13, but that stifled momentum was quickly reversed with birdies on 14 and 15. His lone mistake down the stretch was a missed 4-foot birdie putt on the par-3 17th.

“I didn't give myself as many opportunities as I would have liked to early in the round,” Scheffler said, “but I was still able to shoot under par on the front nine. I kept a clean card, made some nice up-and-downs. Overall, I was pleased with the score I posted today.”

Scheffler thoroughly outplayed the rest of his marquee super group over two days. Both Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele finished right on the cutline at 1-over, needing to make short putts on the 18th just to secure a weekend tee time.

Despite his T5 position, Scheffler is the betting favorite entering the weekend at Quail Hollow. Scheffler is searching for major championship No. 3 and his first outside of Augusta National.

Unlike much of the field, Scheffler’s experience at Quail Hollow is limited. The only time he’s seen the golf course was at the Presidents Cup three years ago. He’s making do quite well.

“I like the position I'm in going into the weekend,” Scheffler said.

The rest of the field shouldn’t.