PGA Championship 36-Hole Recap: Walker, Streb Lead

Jimmy Walker and Robert Streb are the 36-hole leaders at the PGA Championship, but several big names are lurking in the shadows.

Jimmy Walker had to sleep on his first-ever lead in a major championship, but he seemed impervious to the pressure. On Friday at the 98th PGA Championship, the five-time PGA Tour winner came out and fired a four-under 66 to reach nine-under for the championship and sit atop the leaderboard. Unfortunately for Walker, his only bogey of the day came at Baltusrol’s easiest hole, the par 5 18th. Other than that, it was a very solid round of golf for the 37-year-old.

For the week, Walker is just T51 in greens in regulation, but he’s made up for that with a stellar short game. He ranks second in strokes gained: around-the-green. I still believe that his driving will need to improve if he is going to hold on and win the PGA Championship, however. He is only 62nd in strokes gained: off-the-tee.

Joining Walker at the top is Robert Streb, who fired the thirtieth 63 in major championship history on Friday. His performance came out of nowhere — he has missed nine cuts this year, and his best finish is a T18 at the Farmers Insurance Open. His ball striking has been on point this week, as he ranks third in strokes gained: tee-to-green. It will be interesting to see if Streb can hold up under the pressure of a major — it’s been a long time since he’s contended on the weekend in any event.

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Two major studs are lurking just behind the leaders. World No. 1 Jason Day is tied for third, just two strokes back heading into the weekend. The defending PGA Champion shot a five-under 65 in a round that included a double bogey directly followed by a run of seven birdies over the next eight holes. Day has been striking the ball great this week — it’s just a matter of him getting comfortable both on and around the greens. If he figures them out, good luck to the rest of the field.

The most recent major champion, Henrik Stenson, is turning in another solid performance at the PGA Championship. After two early bogeys, Stenson was able to bounce back with an eagle on 18 and three more birdies on his second nine (he started on the 10th) to card his second straight 67. It should come as no surprise that Stenson is leading the field in strokes gained: tee-to-green. He is only three back of the leaders and will need to hole just a few more putts if he wants to take home his second straight major championship.

After playing poorly for most of the summer, Rickie Fowler has finally started to get things rolling again. Back-to-back 68s have placed him in a tie for ninth and within striking distance of the lead heading into Saturday. Jordan Spieth was much improved with his irons in the second round and shot a 67 to rocket up the leaderboard. He needs to be a tad better with the putter if he wants to win, and we all know what he’s capable of.

Perhaps the biggest surprises from the first two rounds at the PGA Championship were missed cuts from Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy. For McIlroy, these numbers pretty much sum up his performance:

For Johnson, it was his first missed cut of the entire season. He entered this week as one of the hottest players in the world. Unfortunately for DJ, all phases of his game were just off. He appeared fatigued at times — not surprising, as he’s played three weeks in a row. With the importance that Baltusrol places on driving, it looked to be a great fit for Johnson, but it just wasn’t to be.

There are thunderstorms in the forecast for both Saturday and Sunday, so delays are a definite possibility. The soft conditions made for easy scoring conditions on Friday, and I expect much the same if we get more rain this weekend.

Next: Baltusrol's Long History With the PGA Tour

What are your predictions for the weekend at the PGA Championship? Will we see another 63 tomorrow? Let us know what you think in the comments, and keep it here at Pro Golf Now so you never miss a PGA Championship update.