Ireland's Shane Lowry starts his second round hovering around the cut mark so there's no better way to get moving than with a birdie on the opening hole.

Matthieu Pavon is heading down the 18th four shots off the lead and looking to cap off a fine bogey-free round.

The 18th is proving tricky today though. It's a par four but has a higher scoring average than the three par-five holes.

His drive is excellent, 327 yards down the right of the fairway, leaving 150 yards to the hole.

Did that go in the fairway bunker and come out?

Aaron Rai sprays his drive right off the tee on the 18th and will be in the thicker stuff.

He should still have an unobstructed view of the flag mind, with the pin on the front left today.

It's back-to-back birdies for Jhonattan Vegas as he makes it to double figures at 10 under par.

He's wide right of the green on the short par four, but plays a wonderful high tariff flop shot that leaves him justnine feet that he dispatches for another birdie.

The lead is getting serious now at four shots.

Awful day for Ludvig Aberg, with that disaster on the Green Mile that he played in five over doing all the damage in his four-over round of 75.

Jordan Spieth shot 76 yesterday but has responded with a 68 today and he's now got to sit and wait to see if he can sneak in for the weekend at two over - as the cut is currently on plus one.

Much more solid from Aaron Rai, who pitches onto the 17th green and then two putts for a par.

A good scrambling par for Luke Donald on the 11th - his second hole of this second round.

He comes up just short of the green with his second shot but chips up to stone dead.

Top 70 and ties will make the cut at this championship.

As things stand, that puts the line at +1, with 71 players currently there or better.

From the early wave, that leaves Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose and Hideki Matsuyama leaving the premises this evening.

For the later starters, plenty of work to do for the likes of Rory McIlroy, Patrick Cantlay, Shane Lowry and Brooks Koepka.

Nial Foster
BBC Sport NI at Quail Hollow

The Quail Hollow merchandise shop has got a live DJ dropping beats not birdies, hyping thousands of fans to splurge on new gear.

As a pale Northern Irishman, I’m basking in the air-con in order to dodge the 31°C heat outside.

Save me from this $50 cap temptation!

Bryson DeChambeau looks a bit cheesed off that his pitch from off the sixth green doesn't drop into the hole after hitting the flag - although the speed it was motoring his ball could've easily raced 10 feet past.

So call it even.

Aaron Rai is having one of those holes that is threatening to undo all his good work over the last two days.

Right off the 16th tee, a proper shank then means his ball clatters off a tree trunk and thankfully scoots out towards the fairway before he comes up short of the dance floor.

His fourth leaves an eight footer for a bogey. It is painful stuff and is getting worse by the minute as he misses his first putt before tapping in for a double.

Image source, Getty Images

A smooth swing off the 13th tee and Jhonattan Vegas hits it to eight feet then rolls in the birdie he's been threatening the last couple of holes.

That's two birdies in four as Vegas moves to nine under and back into a three-shot lead - and the way he's playing he could be even better. The leader is motoring now.

Justin Thomas can't hole a mid-range birdie putt on the ninth green so he'll be signing for a one-over 72 and three over total. Unless many players have an absolute shocker in the late wave, then that will that for the two-time winner.

Collin Morikawa will be around for the weekend though, despite closing with another bogey - his fourth of his second nine holes.

Luke Donald is under way with a par on the long 10th. It's his 19th straight par of the championship - the only man in the field to be bogey-free.

Classic risk-reward approach from America's Michael Thorbjornsen who flings his driver at the 14th hole and finds an immaculate line into the green.

His long eagle putt trundles up to the hole and he can tap in for birdie.

That moves him into a share of second place.

Gavin Andrews
BBC Sport NI at Quail Hollow

The PGA Tour shop here is a total warehouse - 45,000 square foot of crowded chaos on the left side of the first hole.

The strangest offering I found was a Quail Hollow toy race car, because… why not?!

Collin Morikawa is back under par. Successive birdies on the seventh and eighth holes have brightened the American's mood as he strides off to the final tee.

Almost another birdie for Jhonattan Vegas after hitting his approach to 13 feet, but he just can't quite make the putt as it's a testing curler down the hill, and players are terrified of hitting it on this sloping 12th green.

The lead stays at two.

Up ahead of Justin Thomas, Tyrrell Hatton is finishing up on the ninth.

The Englishman is coming in off a birdie on the eighth but tugs his drive into the trees and can only hack out.

His third finds the green but he's got a 50-footer for par and just hits a really poor putt that pulls up five feet short. Hatton is, predictably, gesticulating as he walks up to mark his ball.

The bogey putt is drained and he'll wander off to sign for a 73 that featured a triple-bogey seven on the 18th.

A birdie on the eighth for Justin Thomas but it feels like it could be too little too late.

He moves up to joint 91st, with the top 70 and ties making the cut.

The two-time US PGA champion needs to birdie his last hole and just hope.