Adam Scott and Justin Rose Contending at PGA Championship, Mickelson Makes Cut

Golf can be a strange sport.

On the same day that ponchos and umbrellas sold out, Webb Simpson tied the course record at Oak Hill. Meanwhile, Masters champ Adam Scott and U.S. Open champ Justin Rose, playing in the same group with Phil Mickelson, stayed near the top of the leaderboard even though they played half their rounds in rain and mist.

Rose appeared more confident than he has in past post-round interviews, most likely due to his success at the U.S. Open. He turned an indifferent front nine into a scorcher on the back by changing to a new glove.  

“The rain stopped and literally sort of putting on a new glove, that was like my mental trigger for something different on the back nine,” Rose explained. He proceeded to shoot a 29 and a total of 66 for the day.

“Adam had showed us how to play the golf course (yesterday),” Rose added. “He made it look easy for a couple of days, and obviously it was my turn to get things going low.”

Scott said his recent ability to contend at majors came from a shift in how he approached his schedule and what he chose as his focus.

“I changed a lot of stuff in the way I prepare to play any tournament and to peak four times a year,” he said. “Tiger is a great example for anyone trying to peak.”

He cited Woods’ effort at working on his game at home and his shorter schedule.

“Just dropping a lot of tournaments was the biggest change,” Scott said. “Playing a much lighter schedule, which puts a little pressure on you, because you don’t have as many events to win your FedEx Points or have a chance to win as many tournaments."

But at some point, you’ve got to step out of a comfort zone and back yourself and not be afraid of doing that.”

He added that the change came out of frustration of what he called being a “pretty good player” but not one who could perform at big events.

“I think you leave no stone unturned,” he continued. “You take out factors, you commit fully and it can be done, and that’s what I feel like I have done.”

Scott had a 30 on the nine side whereas Rose fired a 29.

“He definitely made my 30 look ordinary,” Scott said after turning in a second-round 68.

Mickelson, who will just make the cut, is at two over. It is certainly not what he hoped for coming into Rochester.

“I struggled these first two days for sure,” he admitted. “Playing with Adam and Justin, who played really terrific golf, made it look even worse.”

He said he over-read many putts, struggled to hit a fade and because of that had a problem finding the pins on the left sides of the greens.

“The putts that I’ve hit well, I missed high,” he said assessing the round.

“Today was a great day for players who are playing well to separate themselves. What I found was the holes that were birdie holes actually played easier because of the rain by softening the greens. The holes that were really hard, like 17 and 18, played even harder.”

He said he would have to post six or seven under on Saturday to have a chance to win, but as several have shown, that score is out there.

The course definitely played longer Friday.

Scott suggested that 17 was probably not reachable for several in the field due to the wet conditions and heavy air. He hit 2-iron from 230 to the front and 254 to the pin. On the 18th, it was driver, 4-iron. His practice rounds were 3-wood, 7-iron.

He said he hoped to be paired with Rose again. 

Kathy Bissell is a Golf Writer for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained firsthand or from official interview materials from the USGA, PGA Tour or PGA of America.