Adam Scott has once again given rival Rory McIlroy a huge head start at a major and will need something extremely special over the weekend at Valhalla Golf Club to add to his trophy case.
World No.2 Scott sits seven shots off the PGA Championship lead held by the man who knocked him from world No.1 last week, floating in a tie for 26th with plenty of work to do.
Scott was forced to fight hard just to make the cut after two early bogeys but righted the ship enough to make it 14 straight majors of playing on the weekend, the only player to have done so in the last three years.
He sits at two-under par 140 for the week, knowing he'll need to take advantage of an early Saturday tee time and soft conditions to have the likes of McIlroy even think twice of his tilt.
McIlroy leads the way at nine-under 133 with Jason Day flying the Australian flag in a tie for second at eight-under 134.
"I've just got to go out early and try and get up to what the leaders are at before they even tee off," Scott said.
"It's still a major. You never know what can happen. Just because Rory's playing great today, doesn't mean he's playing great tomorrow and Sunday, and same with everyone else. There's a lot of pressure on guys leading a major."
Scott gave McIlroy a nine-stroke buffer at the halfway point of the recent British Open eventually pulling within five but ultimately finishing fifth.
He will need an even hotter effort at Valhalla, something he thinks is attainable given the soft conditions.
Scott, the 2013 Masters champion, even expects the major championship scoring record of 265, held by David Toms from the 2001 PGA Championship, is under threat.
"If you're having a hot day, you can shoot eight or nine under and then it's on," Scott said.
"I think over the weekend, someone could potentially break the major scoring record."
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