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Missed cuts for Tommy Fleetwood and Jon Rahm at the PGA Championship would be notable enough even without contemplating the latter’s 36-hole score.
The sight of Rahm dead last was remarkable – after rounds of 78 and 77, he was 11 over par. Fleetwood’s exit at plus three, while less dramatic, was another obvious blow to the tournament organisers at Wentworth. On a day of high-profile departures, injury forced Patrick Reed out of the event midway through his round. That scenario might have repercussions as Rory McIlroy seeks to prise the DP World Tour’s order of merit from the American’s grasp.
Rahm did not stop for media duties but may have offered extenuating circumstance. It is just that seeing a player of such status and talent toil so badly turns heads. The Spaniard is awaiting the imminent arrival of his fourth child, a matter to which he referred before a ball was struck in Surrey.
The LIV backdrop also cannot be ignored; Rahm is fully expected to depart the ailing circuit when the formalities of a voluntary bankruptcy filing are completed. This is, however, a situation now in the hands of the courts. It would be perfectly natural if Rahm finds himself unable to appropriately focus when inside the ropes. Two Wentworth rounds involved three birdies, 10 bogeys and two double bogeys.
Fleetwood needed a change of fortune, albeit not a significant one, after Thursday’s 73. The 15th has proved his nemesis this week, with a bogey five during the first round followed up by a double bogey on day two. Despite delivering three birdies, the 35-year-old slipped to a 74.
Reed – who looked a candidate to win after the first round – played his first nine holes in 44, nine over par. He grasped his left wrist after a pulled tee shot on the 10th, before his withdrawal was confirmed and he headed straight for medical treatment.
Elements of normality were provided by Adam Scott, who is seeking to become the oldest winner of this event. The 46-year-old Australian backed up a 67 with an identical score. Scott would place huge stock in a Wentworth win.
“Let’s put the majors aside for a minute,” he said. “I think there’s the Players Championship, Wentworth and the Australian Open for me at that level of importance. So it would mean a lot? Absolutely. I mean, it would be huge.
“I’m not heaping pressure on myself to go and win this tournament. I feel like at this point I just need to put my head into a place where I can enjoy the next couple of days. I have done this many times in the past, not so much lately, but I think hopefully that kind of instinct and memory comes back in this position. If I can enjoy myself the next couple of days, I think I’ll get the best out of myself.”
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Scott will form part of an International team trying to end a miserable run against the United States in the Presidents Cup. The event takes place next weekend at Medinah. Scott and Ryan Fox, the Open champion, will fly straight to Illinois from this tournament.
Not part of the Presidents Cup equation is JJ Spaun, which has left the American somewhat miffed. Spaun’s 66 here moved him to eight under and he made his shock at being omitted from Brandt Snedeker’s team plain.
“It was disappointing to be left off,” the winner of last year’s US Open said. “I wasn’t expecting it, to be honest. I kind of hung my hat on my experience with the Ryder Cup last year. I made it to the Tour Championship this year. I won in San Antonio. I did everything I could. I was the odd man out.”
