About the only standardized element of professional golf majors is the distance. In time, that is. Four rounds of 18 holes total 72 holes, usually over four days of competition. After covering events for a passel of years, the routine develops. Round one recaps involve surprises and expectations. Which top players performed as anticipated, combined with which ones did not, and which lesser-known golfers played above their level of expectation. Those from whom nothing was expected, and not much resulted, fall away.

Rounds two and three are about positioning, with the weight gathering after each day. If a golfer remains in contention through 36 holes, she becomes a story line. Through 54 holes, and she becomes a focal point. Day three is equal parts exciting and depressing. The excitement stems from the play that positions golfers for the final march. The depression results from the awareness that just one day remains.

On Sunday, it’s about turmoil, nerves, stumbles, achievements, and glory. You hope, desperately, that someone will make a morning charge that matters. Turning in minus-five to close within eight shots, is delightful, but seldom bears fruit. If no one makes a move, the field of likely contenders is reduced. The multi-board chess match begins, and one golfer remains with untoppled pieces in the end. Today, we find ourselves with two rounds behind us, and two to go. Let’s have a thorough read of the five things we learned on day two of the Women’s PGA Championship.

1} We know Jeeno

Jeeno Thitikul had a one-shot advantage over Minjee Lee at the conclusion of round one. Thitikul extended that margin to three shots by the end of the 36th hole. Now, she faces the necessity of performing among the final groups, under the watching eye of onsite and television audiences, if she wishes to add a major title to her professional vitae.

Thitikul has accrued seven, top-ten finishes in major events, since she began playing them in 2017. In 2022, she earned three of them, while finishing top-25 in the other two. That year also saw her best Women’s PGA finish, a solo fourth at Congressional.

On Friday, at Fields Ranch East, Thitikul gave us more of the same play we witnessed on Thursday. Pars were her friend, bogeys were scarce, and birdies outweighed bogeys. On the windswept fairways of northeast Texas, the Thailand Thitan kept her composure and served notice that the pursuers will need to give greater chase, if they wish to reel her in.

Thitikul has been especially strong around the turn. She has played holes 7 through 12 in seven-under par over the first two days. If she manages to reach those safe spaces under par on day three, watch out.

2} Minjee Lee and Rio Takeda

The back nine continues to give trouble to Minjee Lee. She played it in par figures, barely, on Thursday, and went two-over through that section on Friday. To her credit, she bounced immediately back with a two-under front nine. to return to minus-three and keep Jeeno the leader within reach. Lee will join Thitikul in the final pairing of round three, beginning play at 1:25 local time.

Joining the two-time major champion in second spot is Japan’s Rio Takeda. The co-runner up in this year’s US Open started even worse than Lee on Friday. Takeda also played the inward half first, turned in plus-two 37, then added another bogey at the par-five first. The final eight holes saw a reversal of fortune, as Takeda closed with four pars and four birdies, to post minus-one 71 and join Lee near the top.

Takeda will tee off in the penultimate pairing, at 1:16. She will join Lexi Thompson in the moving day mambo. With a pair of top-ten finishes in the national open of the USA, Takeda is growing in comfort under the klieg lights of major championship golf. Saturday represents another step, another opportunity, to advance.

First birdie of the round for @minjeegolf! #KPMGWomensPGA pic.twitter.com/Iv2W0AZwIZ

— KPMG Women’s PGA Championship (@KPMGWomensPGA) June 20, 2025

3} Ahh, Lexi

Lexi Thompson dialed back her play for 2025. She announced that she would fewer events this season, essentially setting the stage for a semi-retirement. The time away has done her well, as she enters day three at Fields Ranch East in a tie for second. She will tee off in the penultimate partnering, with Rio Takeda.

After opening in par figures on Thursday, Thompson played two-under par golf on Friday to move into fourth place. Thompson feels at home at the Women’s PGA, with three top tens over her near-two decades of major championship play. This showed as she produced a three-under front nine. He solitary bogey came at the par-five 18th. Oddly, the first and the 18th have given players their share of fits, despite playing as par-five holes on the card.

What will Lexi need over the weekend, to have a chance at victory? Honestly, no one knows. We’ve borne witness to so many close calls over the years, that we cannot make the slightest prediction. Victory is on tap for Lexi this weekend, but the blend of ingredients remains a mystery.

4} The 60s

They were a time of turbulence, of experimentation, of love. That decade, that era, feels as distant as the last score in the 60s at Fields Ranch East. In truth, it came on Friday, but there was just one score of three-under par. It was registered to the name of Charley Hull, who secured four birdies agains one bogey. In so doing, Hull moved 94 spots to the good, making the cut, moving inside the top 25.

There are plenty of marvelous shots to report, but they tend to come on the same hole. There were a pair of hole-outs at the 14th, but those other 17 holes seem to be about as challenging as any one might conceive. Rounds in the 60s will continue to be treasured, and if a playe like Hull adds another two, she might find herself hoisting the Womanamaker Trophy on Sunday evening.

5} Prediction Time

There are two ways that we can go with Saturday. The first is that Jeeno Thitikul extends her lead to five shots or more. No lead is ever safe in major championship golf, given the extreme nature of the set-up and conditions, and the enhanced value of the victory. A third round atop the leader’s board would provide equal parts validation and tension for Thitikul. A fourth round would loom, before the trophy would be hers.

The other way to go, is a surge in play from the chasers, or a drop-off in performance from Thitikul. Rather than a many-shot lead, Sunday would offer a packed house in the expensive seats, with an old west shootout on day four. I’m inclined to go with the former scenario, but not by much. As Fields Ranch East is an unknown commodity, and no player has been able to find a mid-60s score through two rounds, there’s little chance that someone will break out with a magical, majestic round. Anticipate something of a Saturday soccer match, as players jostle for the slightest edge.