Rory McIlroy is in second place in the PGA Championship after a five-under par 67 on Saturday at the Whistling Straits course in Wisconsin which saw him just three shots behind leader Nick Watney.


“I didn’t do a lot wrong,” McIlroy said. “I saved my pars when I needed to and took advantage of the holes where I gave myself good chances for birdies. Overall I’m very pleased with the day and looking forward to getting out there and having a good go at it.”

Last year McIlroy finished in a tie for third at this major and he also finished in the same place at the British Open.

Now he looks to go two better and believes that younger playing partners are helping him.

Barely 21, on Saturday he was in a threesome with 19-year-old Seung-Yul Noh and 26-year-old Dustin Johnson,

“It’s nice to have someone throughout (a round) that you can sort of relate to and just talk about stuff,” McIlroy said. “I’m not sure if we’re feeding off each other. I just think we’re all improving and getting better every year.

“I definitely don’t look at the young guys and go, ‘I have to be as good as him.’ I’m just trying to get better and I think everyone else is sort of doing the same thing.”


“The younger players are just getting so much better at a younger age,” he said. “Their confidence is so high that they can take on shots that other guys just might not have thought they could.

“I definitely have a chance and it’s nice it’s come right after the last, after St. Andrews. It’s nice to have another chance. I wasn’t really in contention at St. Andrews after the second day. I did well to finish third. Now I’m in contention in a major again and it’s a great place to be.

“I’ll approach it the same way as I’ve approached the last three days. I’m going to go out there and play my game. That’s all I feel I have to do. If I hit good enough shots and hit enough good putts, it might just be my day.”