Alex Smalley, Maverick McNealy atop cluttered PGA leaderboard

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. -- Maverick McNealy and Alex Smalley, two players without a regular-season win or a major top-15 on their resume, will enter the weekend tied for the lead at the PGA Championship and in prime position to earn a career-changing win at Aronimink Golf Club.

McNealy and Smalley finished Friday's second round at 4-under-par 136 for the championship, and another 13 players are within two shots, setting up an unpredictable weekend at the second major of the year.

Smalley posted a 69 during the morning wave to set the clubhouse lead, and McNealy was the first player all week to touch 6 under before two late bogeys set him back. They're one in front of Chris Gotterup (5-under 65), Max Greyserman (69), Japan's Hideki Matsuyama (67), South Africa's Aldrich Potgieter (70), Australian Min Woo Lee (70) and Germany's Stephan Jaeger (70).

Of that top eight, McNealy, Smalley, Gotterup, Greyserman, Potgieter, Lee and Jaeger have a mere two top-10 finishes at majors among them. Only Matsuyama has prevailed on this stage before, when he captured the 2021 Masters.

But the group at 2 under features heavy hitters who could apply pressure Saturday. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler bogeyed three of his first four holes and settled for a 71, but he's only two back along with Cameron Young (67), Justin Thomas (69), Harris English (67), Ludvig Aberg of Sweden (66), Si Woo Kim of South Korea (67) and David Puig of Spain (67).

Smalley, one of seven co-leaders after one round, was the first of three players to forge a solo lead at 5 under only to give it all back. He played the back nine -- the more difficult half of the course -- in 2 under par but proceeded to bogey Nos. 1, 2 and 3. He bounced back with a birdie at No. 4 before pitching his third shot at the par-5 ninth to 14 inches.

It was Potgieter's turn next, as the 21-year-old birdied Nos. 3 and 9 and spent most of the back nine at 5 under. But he stumbled on his last two holes, bogeying both to drop back to where he began.

That made way for McNealy, who rebounded from a bogey at No. 15 with an eagle 3 at No. 16 and added birdies at Nos. 1, 2, 5 to hit 6 under. Then a short par putt slid by at No. 6, he missed the green at the tricky par-3 eighth and a decision to chip with the toe of his putter didn't pan out, producing another bogey.

Gotterup's 65 is the best round of the tournament so far. Ranked No. 10 in the world, he burst onto the scene with last year's Scottish Open title and third-place finish at the Open Championship before he won two events on the PGA Tour this winter. Gotterup birdied Nos. 7, 8 and 9 at the end of his round to surge up the leaderboard.

Jaeger managed to par all 18 holes Friday, while Greyserman, a native of New Jersey like Gotterup, chipped in for eagle on his final hole, the par-5 ninth.

The cut line was expected to settle at 4 over par as the top 70 players and ties qualify for the weekend. The highest-ranked player who'll miss the cut is World No. 6 Tommy Fleetwood of England (5 over), along with Norway's Viktor Hovland (6 over), U.S. Open champ J.J. Spaun (6 over), Keegan Bradley (6 over) and Bryson DeChambeau (7 over).

Northern Ireland star Rory McIlroy, who described his first-round 74 as "s---," rebounded to shoot a bogey-free 67. The World No. 2 moved to 1 over to comfortably make the cut.

Ben Kern was the only PGA teaching professional of 20 in the field to make the cut. Kern racked up six birdies amid a round of 67 to get to 1 over.

--Adam Zielonka, Field Level Media