CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Kevin Kisner and Thorbjorn Olesen emerged as the top survivors on a Quail Hollow course with some of the fastest, scariest putting surfaces the P.G.A. Championship has ever seen. And both had to watch lengthy birdie putts creep into the cup on the 18th hole to share the lead at four-under 67.
For all the talk about this 7,600-yard course favoring the big hitters, the shortest club in the bag turned out to be just as valuable.
“Any time you have a putt down grain, downhill, we just tap it and hope it stops by the hole,” Jon Rahm said after a 70.