After 36 holes, Jhonnatan Vegas stands alone atop the leaderboard at the 2025 PGA Championship.
Vegas, 40, has never finished inside the top 20 in a major. The Venezuelan's best finish in a major came at the 2016 PGA Championship, where he was T22.
Thursday, Vegas became the first Venezuelan to hold the lead or co-lead in a major. He had a scorching hot finish to the end of his first round, birdieing five of his last six holes to get in the clubhouse at 7 under par.
Friday, Vegas made an early bogey on No. 2 but bounced back with birdies on 7, 10, 13 and 14. At 10 under, he was four shots clear of his closest competitor. However, the round ended in a disappointing way as after a perfect tee shot he made a mess of the par-4 18th, making a double-bogey 6 after a missed 3-foot bogey putt.
On the other hand, he also was the beneficiary of a huge break on the par-3 17th when his tee shot bounced off of a rake and landed on the green. He would par the hole.
Jhonattan Vegas gets an amazing bounce off the RAKE on 17. 😳
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) May 16, 2025
🎥 @PGAChampionship | #PGAChamppic.twitter.com/uV8jjizlEZ
After his round, Vegas acknowledged he made a few mistakes but was happy with his overall play.
“I would say it was a very solid round. Started a little bit shaky the first three holes,” he said. “A little bit of a lucky break there on 17 and finishing quite crappy on 18, but overall solid. Every chance you get to lead a major and play with the lead is never easy. So, I feel proud.”
Despite the late stumble, Vegas was two shots ahead of Matthieu Pavon, who finished his second round at 6 under. The afternoon wave was under way when Vegas finished.
Although he doesn't have an impressive major championship resume, Vegas has won four times on the PGA Tour and has two top 10 finishes in the Players Championship. Now, he's guaranteed a late tee time on the weekend of the PGA Championship.
“This is kind of what we put all those hours for,” Vegas said. “You put all those hours to give yourself chances like this. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to do it throughout my career, but like I said, you never know. You got to keep the pedal down, keep your head down, and keep working hard. You never know when things are going to turn your way.”
There were still players on the course that could catch Vegas as play will continue into Friday evening, but it would take quite the round for that to happen.
If Vegas were to stay in the lead in the late stages of the tournamant, he would be one of the most unlikely contenders in major championship history.
“I have the game to compete in these big events,“ Vegas said. “I’ve just got to—like I said, I’ve just got to do what I do, and good things could happen.”
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jhonattan Vegas Keeps Lead on Friday at PGA Championship.
