McIlroy and Maguire battle back from tough starts in US tests
Jeeno Thitikul hits her tee shot on the first hole during the second round of the KPMG Women's PGA Championship at Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco on Friday, June 20, 2025 in Frisco, Texas. (Photo by Darren Carroll/PGA of America)
Rory McIlroy produced a “bouncing bomb” style escape to keep his Travelers Championship hopes intact as Leona Maguire battled her way into the weekend at the KPMG Women’s PGA.
Maguire dropped four shots in her first five holes at Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco to tumble to within three shots of the eventual cut line in Texas.
But she played the remaining 14 holes in two under to go into the weekend tied for 16th on two-over, just eight shots behind leader Jeeno Thitikul.
It was also a battling day for McIlroy at a windy TPC River Highlands, where a one-over 71 left him just four shots behind Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas and Tommy Fleetwood.
The world number two made four bogeys and a birdie in his first seven holes to find himself eight shots behind Scheffler on three over.
But as Scheffler found water and double-bogeyed the 17th to shoot 69, McIlroy fought back.
Birdies at the 10th, 13th and 15th got him back to six under before he had a stroke of fortune at the 17th, thinning his second from a fairway bunker towards the lake before it skimmed off the surface and found dry land.
He dropped just one shot rather than two to go into the weekend tied for ninth, just four shots behind Scheffler, who was joined on nine under as Thomas shot 64 and Fleetwood a 65.
“I felt like I battled back pretty well,” McIlroy said. “Got off to a rough start, three-over through four, three-over through seven.
“To get it back somewhat close to even par for the day was good.
“Yeah, I battled well. I hit some good shots and held it together when it could have got away from me early in the round.”
He admitted he was lucky to escape with a bogey at the 17th, where he was ona downslope in a fairway bunker and afraid of hitting it fat into the water in front of him.
“I caught it a little skinny, and thankfully it skipped through, and I still made a bogey, but it probably saved me a shot by skipping out,” he said.
McIlroy admitted he was concerned when he trailed Scheffler by eight shots.
“I sort of tried to stay as patient as possible,” he said. “When I dropped back to three (under), I saw Scottie had got to 11. I was like, oh, felt like a long way to sort of climb my way back up.
“But then I made a birdie to get to four and I saw Scottie dropped back to nine and I was like, oh, I don't feel like I'm too far away again.
“The conditions today definitely bunched the entire field together, and should make for an exciting weekend.”
Fleetwood eagled the 13th, chipped in for eagle two and driveable 15th and birdied the short 16th for his 65 as he seeks his first win in the US.
The three leaders are a shot clear of Jason Day, but the chasing pack has more work to do in the third of five women’s majors.
Thitikul added a two-under 70 to her opening 68 to lead by three shots from Australia’s Minjee Lee and Japan’s Rio Takeda on six-under.
Maguire bogeyed the 10th, 11th, 12th and 14th and followed a birdie at the 15th with a bogey at the 16th to slip to four-over.
But she dug deep on her back nine, holing a series of clutch putts as she birdied the par-five third and ninth holes in a two-under back nine.
After missing her previous four cuts, she's now just two shots outside the top 10 with two rounds to go.
