CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) 鈥 The Green Mile nearly sent Masters champion Rory McIlroy home early from the PGA Championship. Quail Hollow鈥檚 closing three holes known did a number on several other players, too.
The Green Mile has lived up to its diabolical reputation this week as one of the most difficult closing stretches in golf and has had a major impact on the leaderboard. In short, if you can navigate the Green Mile in par, or close to it, you鈥檙e probably playing well.
If you don’t your fortunes can change quickly.
McIlroy’s nearly did.
The world’s No. 2 player and recent Masters champion was looking to make a move up the leaderboard late in the second round Friday after pulling within seven shots of leader Jhonattan Vegas.
Then he hit the Green Mile.
He bailed out on his tee shot on the par-3 17th over water, landing to the right of the green. An uphill pitch led to a two-putt bogey and suddenly McIlroy faced the prospect of failing to make the cut if made double bogey on No. 18. (There have been 35 double bogeys or worse there in two days.)
Things got really antsy when he hooked his tee shot way left, and the ball hit a the metal roof of a concession stand and bounced back next to the creek that runs along the left side of the fairway. Faced with an awkward uphill lie 鈥 the ball well above his knees 鈥 McIlroy managed to advance the ball to the rough on the right side of the green.
After he left his chip short, he two-putted from 35 feet for bogey.
McIlroy, at 1-over 143 for the tournament, has played Quail’s Green Mile in an uncharacteristic 4 over this week 鈥 and he’s the guy who has won here four times.
Second-ranked Xander Schauffele needed a clutch par on the 18th to extend his streak of made cuts to 64 tournaments, and got it.
Some others weren’t as lucky on 18.
Vegas saw his four-shot lead trimmed in half when he made a double bogey on 18.
鈥淭hat front fall on 18 is a massive one,鈥 Vegas said. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 get the ball in behind it, everything is channeling to the front of the green. Even if you are, like I said, parallel with the flag on the right side, you have to play your ball 10, 12 feet right of the hole because that edge is very steep, kind of like I did.鈥
Tyrrell Hatton was in third place at 5 under when his tee shot on 18 landed in the creek that McIlroy nearly avoided, causing the Englishman to spit on his driver in disgust. That led to a triple bogey 7 that sent Hatton completely off the leaderboard.
On Thursday, the top three players in the world 鈥 Scottie Scheffler, McIlroy and Schauffele 鈥 all had double bogeys on the 16th hole from the middle of the fairway after mudballs impacted their swings following two days of rain.
The Green Mile has accounted for three of the four toughest scoring holes on the course. Sometimes all you can do is just hope for good luck.
Vegas got some on No. 17 when tee shot 鈥 which was headed to the right of the green 鈥 hit a bunker rake, altering its direction and sending the ball onto the green. He made par.
鈥淪ometimes you get a sprinkler head that goes out-of-bounds or the cart path that goes out-of-bounds or sometimes you hit a rake that goes on the green,鈥 Vegans said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just part of the game, and you鈥檝e just got to enjoy it all.鈥
Don’t tell Justin Thomas that.
The two-time PGA Championship winner bogeyed 16 and 18 on Friday, costing him a shot at his third title and sending him home early.
He and many others will watch the tournament from home thank to the Green Mile.
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