Aaron Rai has positioned himself nicely at the halfway point after signing for a one-under 69.

The Englishman finished nicely with birdies at 16 and 18, the latter coming after a stunning approach to two feet from 205 yards.

He's established himself as a consistent performer in the States and he's going well again here.

Having admitted to underestimating the penalty for missing the fairways around here, Rory McIlroy takes a three wood off the first tee but hooks it left into deep rough.

But he has a good angle and is able to release the ball up the green with no spin, leaving him 25 feet for an opening birdie. He doesn't make that, but it's a stress-free par to begin.

Jon Rahm and Jordan Spieth, who aren't under quite as much pressure to make the cut, both make a four too.

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Scottie Scheffler plays his last nicely to make a closing birdie and after all his issues and problems today he ends up carding a o ne-over round of 71 to stay right at the sharp end of the tournament.

Scheffler couldn't buy a fairway early on, was way off with his wedge game and missed his fair share of putts, and yet after such a slog he finds himself just two shots off the lead currently!

Matt Fitzpatrick couldn't get much going and slipped back a couple of shots, while Justin Rose also struggled but that final chip-in eagle may just have booked him a tee time for the weekend.

Bryson DeChambeau is, appropriately, clad entirely in grey.

It matches his rather gloomy prospects after he overcooks an iron and skids off the green.

The 32-year-old American manages to save par, however, when he chips back on and then rolls in a 13-foot putt.

Ludvig Aberg has the best of the birdie hopes when his 99-yard approach shot plops itself seven feet from the hole, and he duly takes it.

Rickie Fowler is also through the par-four in three judging the pace of green perfectly to slide in a 10 feet.

Brooks Koepka and Tyrrell Hatton both have chances to get on the birdie train but neither manage it.

More frustratingly for the Englishman, a long outside chance ends up turning into a bogey, when he can't knock in a par putt from inside five feet.

Xander Schauffele collects a par after a taking a slightly indirect route to the flag but he'll be happy enough with that after drifting left off the tee.

Wow! Justin Rose was in dire need of something but was in the rough short of the ninth green, his final hole, needing a birdie and then a prayer or two to try and make the cut.

But no, Rose plays a wonderful chip out of the thick stuff and only goes and holes it for an eagle three! That catapults him back to three over and now stands a big chance of making the weekend.

That could be huge.

Nicolai Hojgaard, who finished T2 at last week's Truist Championship, continues to outshine his twin brother Rasmus.

After a one-under 69 yesterday, he's just birdied 13 and 14 - his fourth and fifth - to move to within one of Aldrich Potgieter.

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Rory McIlroy opened with a four-over 74 on Thursday, which he described with a one-word expletive in his post-round media interviews.

It is just the second time in the US PGA Championship that he has ever shot four-over par or worse in the opening round.

He also carded a four-over 74 in R1 at Baltusrol in 2016 en route to missing the cut.

Has he already played his way out of contention though or could he bounce back today?

Rickie Fowler finds the rough with his tee shot from the first and although he is able to recover well to find the green he fluffs his putt and starts the round with a bogey.

Bryson DeChambeau's iron shot from the fairway sits nicely to leave him a birdie chance from eight feet.

But the LIV Golf player skims the edge of the hole and two putts to stay six over.

DeChambeau is going to have to take those kind of chances if he's to claw back the deficit today.

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Chris Gotterup speaking to Sky Sports after shooting the lowest round of the week:

"I don't know how [I shot that score], I definitely would've taken somewhere around even par with how cold and windy it was this morning.

"Three birdies in a row was a nice finish and I feel like I played well, if I missed it I was missing it in the right spots and definitely had a couple of good up and downs too. Today was really good."

On finishing with three straight birdies from the seventh:

"Nine is a birdie hole and seven is a wedge in if you hit the fairway so I'd say that's maybe the stretch, it doesn't feel like there's much give out there but I'll take it."

"For me, it all comes down to driving it well. I have room for improvement there. I feel like I've left a couple out on 16 (par-five). But you take what you can get. I just need to keep my head on straight over the weekend and grind it out."

Justin Rose probably needed to birdie his last two holes to make the cut, he's not only failed at the first attempt but he's made a bogey on his 17th to slip back to five over.

Two over is the current cut mark so it's not looking good at all for the Englishman, and his compatriot Matt Fitzpatrick would probably like a birdie at the last as he's right on the cut mark heading down the ninth hole.

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In the eagle putt goes for Cameron Young - and what a way to finish his round.

He's leapt up the leaderboard with that and will certainly be one of the most feared names in the mix.

Playing partner Justin Thomas can't cash in on the par five after finding the rough from the tee. He'll settle for a par, but a one-under 69 is a decent return today.

It's the end of the line for Keegan Bradley though - he won't be staying for the weekend.

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The terrific short game Patrick Reed showed on the 17th is needed again on 18 as he's short of the green after finding the rough off the tee - but he comes up trumps by chipping it to five feet and knocking in the putt for par.

That's a two-over round of 72 for Reed, who played nicely for most of the day but just had that two-hole wobble coming home which cost him a level-par round.

We'll see how the afternoon wave get on but level par might not be too bad.

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The last non-American player to lift the Wanamaker Trophy was Jason Day back in 2015.

And the Australian looks like he could be going on a birdie blitz after opening with two in his first two holes.

The par-five ninth is the final hole for this three-ball and Cameron Young has just given himself a prime opportunity to turbocharge his challenge. He's zipped his second shot stunningly onto the green and left six-and-a-half feet for eagle.

Pop that in and he'll be one back of the clubhouse lead.

With almost half the field done in round two, I wanted to see how hard the course was playing.

And sure enough, it's brutal. All but three holes over par.

Not the kinda numbers that will encourage if you're hoping to make a run this afternoon, although Chris Gotterup's performance at least proves it can be done.

A solid eight footer for par rolled in nicely by Alex Smalley as he shows he's not going away despite that major wobble he had shortly after taking a two-shot lead just an hour or so ago.

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Bryson DeChambeau will be bidding to improve on a woeful opening round of 76 featuring six bogeys and a double bogey.

At six over the LIV Golf player is in danger of missing the cut - as he did at the Masters after rounds of 76 and 74 - unless he gets his act together.

DeChambeau's American compatriot Rickie Fowler opened with an even-par 70, which leaves him in contention given how things appear to be panning out today.

Sweden's Ludvig Aberg remains in touch at two over.

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Just brilliant. Despite missing the fairway at the ninth, Chris Gotterup advances his ball up to just short of the green and gets up and down for his third straight birdie and a tournament-low five-under 65.

The four-time PGA Tour winner has vaulted around 60 places up the leaderboard today and joins Hideki Matsuyama in the clubhouse lead.

Robert MacIntyre, who has endured a tough day, can't birdie the last and five-over may be one shot too many.

Tommy Fleetwood is on that mark, too, after finally finding a birdie at the last.

JT has taken off his camel-covered jumper for the final two holes of his round - a sign it's getting warmer out there.

His game has also been getting hotter this past hour or so but this is a tricky downhill birdie putt from 40 feet. Navigated well to secure a par.

Cameron Young isn't much closer and his fine attempt grazes the edge before stopping a foot away.