The Latest: Lowry saves par from the beach at Ocean Course

KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. (AP) — The Latest on the PGA Championship, golf's second major of the year (all times local):

11:10 a.m.

British Open champion Shane Lowry saved par from the sand at the PGA Championship, only this was from a beach near the Atlantic Ocean instead of greenside bunker.

Lowry's tee shot on the par-5 16th in Friday's second round was way right and landed on the beach area against some fencing not far from the ocean.

Lowry got some relief to move the ball back from the fence and, like he might from any sand bunker, popped his ball back on the fairway, although still around 300 yards away from the green on the 600-yard hole.

Lowry put his fourth shot about 22 feet away from the flag and drained the putt for par.

He is at even par for the tournament, five shots behind leader Branden Grace.

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10:15 p.m.

Corey Conners' wild first nine is finally over at the PGA Championship.

The Canadian who led by two shots after Thursday's opening round at the Ocean Course, started his first seven holes without a par. That run included five bogeys against two birdies to drop from the top spot.

Conners closed his opening nine with pars on the challenging 17th and 18th holes. He was two shots behind current leader Branden Grace at 4-under par.

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8:45 a.m.

Corey Conners made one bogey in his opening-round 67 at the PGA Championship. He made three in the first four holes of his second round.

Starting on the back nine of the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island in calm morning conditions, Conners dropped shots on the 10th, 12th and 13th holes to fall back to 3 under.

That left him in a large group tied for the lead that included 50-year-old Phil Mickelson.

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8:20 a.m.

Corey Conners started the second round of the PGA Championship with a bogey and a birdie to maintain his two-shot lead.

For Dustin Johnson and a few other top players, Friday is mainly about making sure they get two more days at Kiawah Island.

A double-bogey to close out his opening round gave Johnson a 4-over 76, leaving him outside the top 70 and ties going into the second round. At least he had morning conditions, which can mean a little less wind.

Johnson has never started a year by missing the cut in consecutive majors. Later in the afternoon, Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas are among those in danger of going home early.

12:15 p.m.

Ready for a rerun of the 2011 PGA Championship? Keegan Bradley and Jason Dufner are doing their part early on at the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island to make that happen.

Bradley, who beat Dufner in a playoff at the Atlanta Athletic Club a decade ago for the major title, is on top at 4-under 72 at the PGA Championship. He is a stroke in front of four others, a group that includes Dufner, as both are winding down their opening rounds.

Two years after his runner-up finish to Bradley, Dufner won the PGA Championship.

Defending champion Collin Morikawa is two strokes behind Bradley midway through his round.

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10:45 a.m.

Bryson DeChambeau is heading in the wrong direction early on at the PGA Championship.

The reigning U.S. Open champion made bogey on four straight holes in the opening round at the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island.

DeChambeau, whose scientific approach to the game has helped fueled his success, spoke of the “laminar flow of the wind” at the seaside layout. And he struggled to manage it during the middle of his opening nine of the year's second major.

His approach on No. 13 was 40 feet from the hole, leading to a three-putt bogey. He put his tee shot on the next hole, a par 3, into the bunker and could not save par. He drove way left on the 15th and missed a 9-footer for par. On the 16th, DeChambeau's approach went into a bunker and he could not get up and down to fall to 2-over par.

Matt Jones of Australia is at 4-under to lead in the middle of the morning wave.

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9:30 a.m.

Cameron Tringale is seeking his first win on the PGA Tour and is off to a strong start at the Ocean Course.

Tringale had three birdies on his opening nine holes at the PGA Championship and was a stroke ahead of four players, including Rickie Fowler and Louis Oosthuizen. He birdied the sixth and seventh holes to move to 3-under par.

Tringale is playing his seventh PGA Championship. He has never finished better than 72nd.

Rory McIlroy, who won the PGA on this course in 2012, got off to a bumpy start with an opening bogey on the 10th hole. But he bounced back with birdies on the next two holes.

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7:30 a.m.

Francesco Molinari has withdrawn from the PGA Championship.

The 2018 British Open champion cited a back injury in pulling out of the championship Thursday morning.

He was replaced in the field by first alternate Brandon Hagy, who has been practicing on the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island this week.

Molinari has fallen to 144th in the world. If no one else withdraws, the PGA Championship will have 99 of the top 100, matching the record for most players from the top 100.

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7 a.m.

South Carolina native Patrick Rada found the middle of the fairway with the opening tee shot in the PGA Championship.

It was a gorgeous morning on the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island with a little trepidation in the air. The flags along the practice range already were flapping even as the sun was beginning its climb over the Atlantic.

The wind is everything at Kiawah Island and it has been strong enough to get everyone's attention this week. Even the power players have been using long irons, hybrids and even fairway metals into par 4s and par 3s.

Rada is the head PGA professional at MacArthur Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Florida. He likely was chosen to hit the first tee shot given his South Carolina roots.

Among those playing in the morning were Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas and Bryson DeChambeau. McIlroy won at 13-under 275 in 2012 the other time the PGA Championship was at Kiawah.

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