By Hannah Mack, Sports@CJC

PINEHURST, N.C. — Three-time U.S. Open champion Tiger Woods missed the cut Friday at the 2024 Open, joining five other former champions who are headed home after long second day at the difficult Pinehurst No. 2 course. Only 74 of the 156 golfers advanced to weekend play.

It’s the first time since 2015 that Woods has missed the cut in consecutive major tournaments. He also didn’t make it to the weekend in the PGA Championship in May. Woods struggled in both rounds and despite his birdie on hole No. 4, his 3-over 73 performance put him over the +5 cut line. 

“It was probably the highest score I could’ve shot today,” Woods said. “I hit a lot of good shots it just quite didn’t go my way.

“I thought I played well enough to be in contention, but it just didn’t work out.”

Woods said he will only compete in one more tournament this year and says this “may or may not” be his last Open.

Surprise Tournament Leader

Swedish PGA Tour pro Ludvig Åberg, who is making his first career U.S. Open appearance, sits atop the leaderboard at 5-under par after his 1-under 69 performance Friday. His driving and putting were impressive as he hit 20% more greens in regulation than the field.

“We tried to stay disciplined and stay patient and try to hit it to our targets all the time and see how many good golf shots we can hit,” said Åberg, who finished second in the Masters in April.

Åberg, 24, has hit 20 consecutive fairways so far which is the most by a player making their Open debut in nine years.

Despite this accomplishment, the course has challenged Åberg. He says it’s the toughest he’s ever played, but looks to continue his success over the next couple of days. 

Patrick Cantlay (71) and Rory McIlroy (72) both shot over par in the second round, but still are near the top of the leaderboard at T2 and T5, respectively. McIlroy has finished in the top 10 in the Open in each of the past eight years, however he has not won the Open since 2011. Cantlay looks for a higher finish than 14th, where he landed the previous two years.

Former Open champions Justin Rose (2013), Webb Simpson (2012), Dustin Johnson (2016), Gary Woodland (2019) and Lucas Glover (2009) also missed the cut.

Gators Update: Horschel Shines, Bell Falls Just Short

Former UF golfer Billy Horschel made up a lot of ground on Day Two, shooting 3-under 67. Horschel drove the ball extremely well, hitting all 14 fairways. The field average was only 69%. 

After shooting a 3-over 73 in the first round, Horschel only carded two bogeys Friday, but made up for those with five birdies. Horschel was fourth in strokes gained short game with +1.64.

Horschel is now at an even par heading into Saturday and sits at T16 for the tournament, just five strokes behind Åberg.

UF sophomore Parker Bell, 20, bounced back after his opening-round 77 with a solid second round Friday. Bell shot an even-par 70, resembling Bryson Dechambeau with massive drives. Bell averaged a 359-yard driving distance, which ranked first among the field — 47 yards above the field average. 

In true Bell fashion, he finished the day with three birdies in his final six holes, including closing with a birdie on No. 9 to finish his tournament. He finished just two strokes off the cut line. 

“I just had so much fun out there,” said Bell, who was making his first career U.S. Open appearance. “Early on, I was a little nervous but once I got to the back end I was like I’m going to drive every hole and see what happens.”

Bell heads back to Gainesville with his head held high and his first major tournament under his belt.

Sneaking In

Francesco Molinari made the cut with a miracle hole-in-one on No.9, his final hole of the day. It was the 53rd hole-in-one in U.S. Open history and only the fourth on this par-3 at Pinehurst. 

“What are the chances really?” Molinari said.  “I don’t even know what to say. Just incredible.” 

Molinari’s last-minute heroics moved him 5-over for the tournament, keeping him alive over the weekend. 

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler snuck into the weekend despite a 4-over 74 Friday that pushed him to +5 for the tournament, but it was enough to keep his 672-day streak without a cut alive. 

Other Day Two Standouts

Dechambeau draws large crowds on every hole with fans hoping to see him pull out the driver, however, his putting game was the most impressive Friday. He gained 2.29 strokes putting, sinking a 19-foot putt on hole No.12 and a capping his day with a beautiful up-and-down on the final hole to finish the day tied for second just one shot back, thanks to a 1-under 69 outing.

“I stayed patient, gave myself good opportunities when they mattered and made a lot of clutch putts coming in,” said Dechambeau, who won the U.S. Open in 2020.

Dechambeau plans for his putting, driving and chipping to come together especially as the course becomes more firm over the weekend. 

Hideki Matsuyama and Thomas Detry had two of the day’s most phenomenal rounds shooting 4-under 66 and 3-under 67, respectively.

Matsuyama made a massive jump up to eighth, thanks to his nearly perfect putting. He gained 3.15 strokes putting which is second in the field. Detry, meanwhile, has a tournament-best six birdied Friday, including three in a row on 11, 12 and 13.

Third-Round Schedule

Play will begin Saturday at 8:44 a.m. ET at Pinehurst. With a lot of work to do, Scheffler will begin his round at 10:01 a.m. Horschel, meanwhile, will tee off 2:13 p.m. 

McIlroy goes off at 3:13 p.m. and Cantlay and Detry follow at 3:24 p.m. The final group to tee off is DeChambeau and Aberg at 3:35 p.m.

Posted: June 15, 2024
Category: Covering the U.S. Open
Tagged as: 2024 U.S. Open, Covering the U.S. Open