Hideki Matsuyama, Justin Thomas Among Surprising Cuts at PGA Championship

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina — Hideki Matsuyama‘s PGA Championship ended earlier than expected after finishing 2-over par 73 on Friday at Quail Hollow Club. This was a follow-up to his opening round of 72. Disappointed but resilient, Matsuyama took to the driving range to work on his swing, humorously swinging hard enough to almost lose his balance.

Matsuyama had entered the tournament with the longest active streak of cuts made in major championships, standing at 19. However, he was not alone in making an early exit; other notable players missing the cut included Justin Thomas, who won the PGA in 2017 at Quail Hollow, and rising star Ludvig Åberg.

Åberg’s missed cut was particularly harsh. Starting at 2-under, he faced a challenging stretch on the Green Mile, which resulted in a bogey-double-double streak. Many had hoped the cut would fall at 2-over, but it was set at 1-over instead.

Golfers Jordan Spieth, Shane Lowry, and recent champion Sepp Straka also found themselves on the wrong side of the cut line. Meanwhile, teammates Sergio Garcia and David Puig managed to birdie their last two holes to make it through to the weekend.

Patrick Reed and Patrick Cantlay, both of whom had previously made 11 consecutive cuts in majors, saw their streaks end as Reed shot 4-over and Cantlay finished at 6-over.

Xander Schauffele now holds the longest active streak of 13 straight cuts made, followed by Scottie Scheffler at 12. Schauffele secured a place for the weekend, finishing at 1-over after inputs of 72-71.

Notably, three-time PGA champion Brooks Koepka had a rough outing this week, shooting 75-76, marking the first time he has missed back-to-back major cuts in his career.

Phil Mickelson started strong with nine birdies in 11 holes but suffered a devastating quadruple-bogey on the 12th, concluding his week at 9-over after a final round of 72. Additionally, Justin Rose missed the cut at 9-over, while Russell Henley came in at 10-over, marking his second consecutive missed cut at a major.

Michael Block, who made headlines at Oak Hill two years ago, finished with rounds of 75-82, failing to repeat his past success.