Day Two Of The US Open Ends With Hole-In-One To Make The Cut
Day two of the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 was a dramatic change of pace from day one. After some favorable conditions and pin placements on Thursday led to a number of low scores, day two was a very different story.
The best score on the course came from Hideki Matsuyama, who was the only player to card a four under 66. But big names struggled throughout the round, most notably pre-tournament favorite Scottie Scheffler. Scheffler and PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele had a brutal fifth hole, putting their second shots in the worst possible position. Both carded a double bogey, while Rory McIlroy was able to escape with par.
A number of former major winners and top players missed the cut, including Dustin Johnson, Max Homa, Justin Thomas, Phil Mickelson, Lucas Glover, Viktor Hovland, Justin Rose, Gary Woodland, Webb Simpson and Tiger Woods. But one player who managed to sneak in was Francesco Molinari. And he did it at the last possible moment, in the most dramatic possible way.
Molinari stepped up to the 9th hole tee box, his 18th hole of the day, at seven over, with the projected cut at five over par. Needing an eagle to make it to the weekend, Molinari had one possible option: a hole in one.
And that's exactly what he did.
PINEHURST, N.C. - Francesco Molinari of Italy plays a second shot on the second hole during the second round of the 124th U.S. Open at Pinehurst Resort on June 14 in Pinehurst, North Carolina. (Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)
US Open Set Up For Dramatic Finish After Brutal Day Two
Molinari's incredible shot belies just how difficult Pinehurst played on Friday; with the greens reportedly running at a 13, birdies were incredibly hard to come by for most players. Scheffler, for example, did not have a single birdie, the first time that'd happened to him in over two years.
Ludvig Aberg, playing in just his second major championship, has a one shot lead over Patrick Cantlay, Bryson DeChambeau and Thomas Detry, with Rory McIlroy lurking two shots back along along with Matthieu Pavon and Tony Finau.
Given how easy it is to make bogeys, and the ability of the USGA to incorporate increasingly difficult pin placements, it's possible scores continue to back up. Schauffle at one point was three under for his round, before making double bogey to fall to one under for the tournament.
It's an exciting event with an exciting group of players remaining. A group that now includes Francesco Molinari in the most unlikely of ways.