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Rory McIlroy drains a bunch of late birdie putts to make the cut at the PGA Championship

McIlroy played his first three holes of the day in 5-over par and was 7-over for the championship. But he roared back late with four birdies on his final six holes to qualify for the weekend at Bethpage Black.

Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, reacts to his hit out of the rough on the 12th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament, Friday, May 17, 2019, at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, reacts to his hit out of the rough on the 12th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament, Friday, May 17, 2019, at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)Read moreCharles Krupa / AP

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — After Rory McIlroy started with two double bogeys and a bogey on the first three holes of his Friday round at the PGA Championship, he might have been tempted to be making weekend plans away from Bethpage Black.

But McIlroy, who stood at 7-over par for the tournament after his early struggles, steadied himself until his putter could come around. And it did, leading to four birdies on his final six holes that enabled him to make the 36-hole cut.

McIlroy, a two-time PGA champion and one of the pre-tournament favorites, came in with a 1-over 71 and a 36-hole score of 143.

“Pride, just pride, just trying to play a good round of golf and try to get something that's close to the best out of myself,” he said. “And, yeah, I don't like missing cuts. It's not something that I'm used to fortunately, and I wanted to be around for the weekend.

“At least if you're around for the weekend, you can go out there and maybe shoot a good one (Saturday) and at least give yourself half a chance.”

The putting was the key. On his late four-birdie binge, McIlroy made 76 feet worth of putts, including makes of 23 and 22 feet on the fifth and sixth holes.

“It’s not as if I haven’t been in those positions before,” he said of being close to missing the cut. “It’s just a matter of not pressing too much and staying patient and letting the good golf sort of come through. Took a while today, but it eventually got here.”