KOHLER, US — A back-nine birdie burst saw David Lingmerth regain the outright lead in the second round of the PGA Championship Friday at seven-under par with four holes to play. The Swede had topped the leaderboard at eight-under for the tournament after birdies at three of his first five holes. But his fortunes changed abruptly with a double-bogey at the par-three seventh followed by bogeys at eight and nine. Lingmerth regained the lead with three birdies on the trot starting at the 12th. He was one stroke better than the six-under par overnight lead of American Dustin Johnson, who had yet to tee off. South Africa's George Coetzee was the leader in the clubhouse on five-under 139 after posting the round of the tournament thus far - a seven-under par 65. Masters and US Open champion Jordan Spieth was five-under for the tournament with four to play. World No. 1 and defending champion Rory McIlroy, playing in a marquee group with Spieth, was one-under for the day and two-under for the tournament with four holes remaining. With the winds expected to kick up again in the afternoon, Johnson was due to tee off at 18:20 GMT. Tiger Woods, trying to rebound from a first-round 75 and avoid missing the cut at a third straight major, was to tee off at 18:30 GMT. Johnson rules first day Dustin Johnson, so often the nearly man in recent majors, stayed patient and took advantage of relatively calm early conditions to stand one stroke clear after the opening round of the PGA Championship Thursday. While most golf fans eagerly awaited the ‘Rory and Jordan' show that was to unfold in the afternoon at Whistling Straits, the long-hitting American racked up an eagle at the par-five 16th, five birdies and a bogey to card a six-under-par 66. Swede David Lingmerth, who won his first PGA Tour title at the Memorial Tournament in June, recorded the best score in the tougher afternoon conditions as winds gusted up to 28 mph (45 kph), firing a six-birdie 67 to finish a stroke off the pace. It was a rewarding and timely opening round for Johnson, who five years ago incurred a two-stroke penalty on the final hole of the last PGA Championship to be played here that cost him a spot in a playoff for the title. “I thought I did a great job of just staying patient, hitting the shots that the course allowed me to hit,” Johnson said of his opening round in the year's fourth and final major. “And I struck the ball well today, so I was very pleased.” Fellow Americans Matt Kuchar, Russell Henley, Harris English, J.B. Holmes and Scott Piercy, Australians Jason Day and Matt Jones, and New Zealander Danny Lee opened with 68s on the visually spectacular but challenging links-style layout. World No. 1 Rory McIlroy and second-ranked Jordan Spieth, who between them have won four of the last five Majors played, were among the late starters in a marquee grouping with British Open champion Zach Johnson. Watched by massive galleries, all three provided their share of the spectacular, along with a few mis-steps along the way, before McIlroy and Spieth wound up with matching 71s and Johnson with a 75. The return from an ankle injury by McIlroy to defend his PGA Championship crown this week and Spieth's bid to win a third grand slam title this year had marked out the season's final major as extra special, and both remain in contention. “It was a solid round of golf,” said McIlroy, after returning to competition for the first time in 40 days. Masters and US Open champion Spieth was delighted with the grit that he displayed during a round highlighted by a chip-in for birdie at the par-three 12th. “I'm pleased with it,” said the 22-year-old American. Spieth missed a 10-footer for birdie at the 10th and ran up his only bogey of the day at the par-five 11th, where he three-putted from 15 feet. Four-time champion Tiger Woods, who won the most recent of his 14 majors at the 2008 US Open, did not benefit from his early tee time as he mixed two birdies with five bogeys on the way to a 75. “Well, I hit it great today, but I made actually nothing,” said Woods. Among the other big names in the field, twice Masters champion Bubba Watson and five-times major winner Phil Mickelson carded even-par 72s. — Reuters
