An unheralded pair of long shots, Smalley and McNealy, lead the PGA Championship

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. (AP) — Alex Smalley's performance in the second round of the PGA Championship defied his winless run on the PGA Tour. Smalley has zero wins in 140 starts on tour and was a major long shot to win the 108th PGA Championship .

On Friday, Smalley instead grabbed his share of the PGA lead with fellow long shot Maverick McNealy, a unheralded pair at Aronimink unexpectedly taking the top spots on the leaderboard. Smalley circled the Donald Ross layout like a majors veteran and charged into contention, posting four birdies on his way to a sensational 1-under 69, with his name popping up atop the leaderboard. Try as he might, Smalley could not avoid peeking at the leaderboards dotting the course.

“I try not to, but it’s hard to sometimes because the leaderboards are right in your face and in a number of spots,” said Smalley, playing in his fourth PGA. The 29-year-old Smalley, out of Rochester, New York, has never finished higher in a major than a tie for 23rd. That came at Oak Hill in the 2023 PGA in his hometown.

But his game has been trending upward, with seven top-25 finishes this season, including a second with teammate Hayden Springer in New Orleans and as seventh-place finish at Doral. He conceded his newfound attention was taking some adjustment. “I don’t like being in the spotlight a whole lot, so I’m still trying to get used to playing in front of large groups of people like there are at tournaments like this one,” he said.