By Frank Pingue
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Reuters) -Jordan Spieth, in his ninth attempt to complete the career Grand Slam, and Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama were among the high-profile players to miss the cut at the PGA Championship on Friday.
World number seven Matsuyama arrived at Quail Hollow with the longest active streak of consecutive major championship cuts made at 19 but bogeyed the final hole of his second round to finish two shots outside the one-over cut line.
Spieth made a dismal start to the year’s second major and will be left to wonder what could have been, as his three-under-par 68 was an eight-shot improvement over his first round but still left him one shot outside the cut line.
Six of the top 10 players in the world ranking missed the cut as Justin Thomas, who won the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, Ludvig Aberg, Russell Henley, Sepp Straka and Shane Lowry joined Matsuyama in clearing their weekend.
Masters runner-up Justin Rose also finished well outside the cut after going nine-over-par across his first two rounds.
Half of the 16 LIV Golf members who were in the 156-player starting field this week also missed the cut, a group that includes past major champions Brooks Koepka, Cameron Smith, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed and Martin Kaymer.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue; Editing by William Mallard)
