Sports · updated 2h ago · 3 min read
Ryan Gerard Takes Two-Shot Lead Into Weekend At BMW PGA Championship At Wentworth
Gerard bogey-free 65 gives him a two-shot lead into the weekend. Opening 67 and four birdies keep him in the mix at Wentworth.
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Gerard leads at Wentworth
Ryan Gerard carded a bogey-free round of 65 to take a two-shot lead into the weekend at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, after an opening 67 left him in the mix.
“Ryan Gerard carded a brilliant bogey-free round of 65 to take a two-shot lead into the weekend”
Rory McIlroy stayed in contention with a five-under 67 to sit four strokes behind second-round leader Ryan Gerard, and he said, "This weekend is a big weekend for me to pick up a few points and make the race even tighter going into these last few weeks."
Gerard’s 65 included an eagle-birdie finish to reach 12 under, leaving him two shots clear of Adam Scott and Italian Filippo Celli, who were at 10 under.
Aaron Rai, who played alongside McIlroy and Open champion Ryan Fox, signed for a 69 and was at nine under alongside Spain’s Manuel Elvira.
Patrick Reed withdrew after nine holes, and McIlroy said, "Unfortunately he's pulled out this week, which gives me an opportunity to try to claw back some ground that I lost last week in Ireland."
Rahm misses cut; Reed exits
Jon Rahm failed to make the cut at Wentworth after shooting 78 on Thursday and 77 on Friday for a total of +11, finishing 138th and last among non-withdrawals/disqualifications.
Golf Channel said Rahm equaled the worst 36-hole performance of his professional career, and it noted he finished "solo 138th" with six players not completing two rounds.
Patrick Reed withdrew from the BMW PGA Championship midway through his second round on Friday after being nine over through nine holes, and Golf Digest reported he was seen nursing his wrist after hitting a shot from a tree root.
Reed, who had been inside the top 10 thanks to a four-under 68 on Thursday, retired after being carted off, and he had earlier said, "Just to finish No. 1 would be amazing."
On the leaderboard, the BBC reported Brooks Koepka missed the cut at one over, while Tommy Fleetwood missed the weekend after a 74 left him at three over and Jon Rahm endured another day to forget with a 77 to end 138th and last.
Race to Dubai pressure
With the BMW PGA Championship heading into the weekend, the DP World Tour’s coverage placed Ryan Gerard’s momentum alongside the Race to Dubai standings, noting he arrived in England at a career-high 21st on the Official World Golf Ranking.
“McIlroy's hopes of winning a record-equalling eighth Race to Dubai title were also buoyed by the withdrawal of Patrick Reed”
The BBC said McIlroy’s hopes of winning a record-equalling eighth Race to Dubai title were buoyed by Reed’s withdrawal, and it framed McIlroy as at eight under overall heading into the weekend.
El Correo described Rahm’s cut miss as a collapse that left him at the bottom of the leaderboard, not counting six players who had withdrawn, and it said he was "138th on the list of a tournament that he has never found his measure in."
The stakes for the field were also reflected in the DP World Tour report that Gerard was one shot off the lead as he entered Wentworth’s par-five finishers, before going eagle-birdie to leap ahead of nearest challengers Filippo Celli and Adam Scott.
Meanwhile, BBC’s round-two snapshot showed a tight chase behind Gerard, with Adam Scott and Filippo Celli at 10 under and McIlroy and Fox among a quintet a further shot back, setting up a weekend where points and positions could shift quickly.