Rory McIlroy narrowly made the cut at the PGA Championship as he chases back-to-back major championship wins.
McIlroy finished his first two rounds of the PGA Championship on one-over, which represented the cut line.
He carded a 74 and a 69 on Thursday and Friday respectively, where conditions were tricky due to heavy rainfall at Quail Hollow earlier in the week.
Such conditions had a real impact on many experienced players across the PGA Tour and LIV Golf missing the cut, many by a significant margin.
But McIlroy now has a chance to follow up his success from The Masters with another PGA Championship win.
Rory McIlroy driving accuracy struggles come back at the PGA Championship
He did, however, enter the weekend well behind solo leader Jhonattan Vegas, who started his third round on eight-under.
But McIlroy will likely only have a chance of closing that gap if he rapidly improves his driving accuracy over Saturday and Sunday.
It is not a new problem for the Northern Irishman, with McIlroy ranked 169th for driving accuracy on the PGA Tour after his win at the Players Championship in March.
He has since fallen to 175th place, with the issue reemerging in the first two rounds of the PGA Championship.
His figure of 35.71% ranked T73 in the field, and represented his lowest-ranked stat from Thursday and Friday.
Key Rory McIlroy stats as he narrowly makes PGA Championship cut
The very lengthy course at Quail Hollow should really be playing into the hands of McIlroy, one of the biggest hitters in world golf.
And perhaps unsurprisingly he hasn’t had an issue in that regard, having entered the weekend ranked sixth for driving distance.
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The conditions will also be playing a part, but the five-time major winner was also forced into a major change with his driver right before the tournament got underway.
McIlroy’s driver was deemed non-conforming by USGA rules, forcing The Masters champion to switch to a backup.
| Stat | Total | Rank |
| SG: Off The Tee | 1.305 | 27 |
| SG: Approach to Green | -1.431 | 71 |
| SG: Around The Green | 2.836 | 8 |
| SG: Putting | -0.534 | 66 |
| SG: Total | 2.175 | T62 |
| Driving Accuracy | 35.71% (10/28) | T73 |
| Driving Distance | 324.80 yds | 6 |
| Longest Drive | 343.00 yds | T19 |
| Greens in Regulation | 52.78% (19/36) | T64 |
| Sand Saves | 66.67% (2/3) | T17 |
| Scrambling | 58.82% (10/17) | T43 |
| Putts per GIR | 1.63 | T14 |
| Feet of Putts Made | 61′ 5″ | 63 |
Still, a much improved driving accuracy figure should still be on his agenda, otherwise a win at Quail Hollow has to be ruled out for undoubtedly one of the best drivers of the ball the game has ever seen.
He’s hit just 10 of 28 fairways at this stage, and perhaps needs to sacrifice some length for improved lines from the tee.
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