Rory McIlroy surges with 4 birdies on the front nine to join the PGA Championship chase

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NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. (AP) — Rory McIlroy had four birdies and shot 3 under on the front nine Saturday to charge back into contention at the PGA Championship, one day after he complained about the setup at Aronimink Golf Club.

McIlroy won the Masters and is trying to join Ben Hogan (1953), Arnold Palmer (1960), Jack Nicklaus (1972), Tiger Woods (2002) and Jordan Spieth (2015) as the only golfers to win the first two majors of the year in the modern rotation.

He started Round 3 five strokes behind leaders Alex Smalley and Maverick McNealy, who were set to tee off in the afternoon.

McIlroy, winner of the 2012 and 2014 PGA Championships, took advantage of his early start on moving day and cracked the top 10.

Two long days at Aronimink produced the highest 36-hole score to par to lead the PGA Championship in 14 years. The 15 players separated by two shots made it the biggest logjam going into a weekend at a major since 2002.

The difference between first and worst among 82 players who made the cut was only eight shots, unusually tight for any tournament, much less a major.

“I think a bunched leaderboard like this, I think it’s a sign of not a great setup,” McIlroy said on Friday. “I think when it’s as bunched as it is, because it hasn’t really enabled anyone to separate themselves.”

Sure enough, low scores dominated on Saturday.

Justin Rose, Chris Kirk and Michael Kim took off about as fast as the horses scheduled to race later at the Preakness.

Kim made the most of his new life at the PGA Championship and shot a 5-under 30 on the front nine Saturday, using the strength of six birdies to get off to a terrific start to the third round.

Kim, who has never finished better than 17th in any major, was outside the cutline in Round 2 until he chipped in for eagle on his final shot to extend his weekend.

Kim made more birdies on the front nine Saturday than he did in the first two rounds combined. He opened with three straight birdies before a bogey on four.

Kim nearly holed out from the rough on the seventh and finished with his sixth birdie in the first seven holes. He put the move in moving day, jumping from 93rd after one round to 53rd after the second to ninth through the first nine holes.

Kim's blistering start was an early sign that low scores might allow more golfers to zip into contention in an already crowded leaderboard.

There was some serious cash at stake, as well as the prestige of winning a major.

The PGA Championship raised its total prize fund this year to $20.5 million, a $1.5 million increase from last year but still third among the three American majors.

The winner’s share will be $3,690,000.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf