Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay share a one-shot lead midway through the BMW Championship after Olympia Fields played extremely difficult for the second straight day.
The leaders sit at 1-under through 36 holes. McIlroy and Cantlay posted rounds of 69 and 68, respectively, on Friday and are the only players under par for the week.
"It was a tough day out there. The golf course is really, really good, but it's very, very difficult," Cantlay said after shooting one of the lowest rounds of the day.
Many players are comparing this week's setup to the one they will face in three weeks at Winged Foot for the U.S. Open.
"This is probably the closest, if not the same, as playing a U.S. Open," said Louis Oosthuizen, who sits in a tie for sixth with a score of 1-over.
Rain is expected overnight in the Chicago area, but Kevin Kisner doesn't think that will help make the course play any easier.
"I don't know if any rain will matter, really. There's no grass, so it's not going to hold anything," Kisner said. "I think even par wins the golf tournament."
If that's the case, the tournament remains wide open. There are 29 players within five shots of McIlroy and Cantlay heading into the weekend.
Here's how the top of the leaderboard stands after Round 2:
| Place | Player | To Par | R2 Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Patrick Cantlay | -1 | 68 |
| T1 | Rory McIlroy | -1 | 69 |
| T3 | Hideki Matsuyama | E | 73 |
| T3 | Dustin Johnson | E | 69 |
| T5 | Adam Scott | +1 | 69 |
| T5 | Brendon Todd | +1 | 68 |
| T5 | Louis Oosthuizen | +1 | 69 |
| T5 | Tony Finau | +1 | 71 |
| T5 | Billy Horschel | +1 | 71 |
Bubba Watson (2-over), Xander Schauffele (3-over), Bryson DeChambeau (3-over), and Tyrrell Hatton (3-over) are among the group hanging around the top 10.
The thick rough plus firm and fast conditions led to another over-par scoring average from Olympia Fields. Round 2 played to a score of 72.72 - only marginally easier than Round 1.
