Pinehurst No. 2 started to show its teeth, as the cut line moved to five-over-par and Ludvig Åberg rose to the top of the 124th U.S. Open leaderboard
It's hard to believe that Ludvig Åberg is only playing in the third Major of his career and his first U.S. Open. His meteoric rise, since turning professional only a year ago, means that expectations have been high from golf fans and media. However, after nursing a recent knee injury, there were some doubts about how he may perform.
The Swede can now put those rumours to bed as he takes a one shot lead, at five-under-par, into the weekend. Åberg is looking to continue his form into the weekend:
"I think obviously this being my first one, I think a U.S. Open is supposed to be hard. It's supposed to be tricky, and it's supposed to challenge any aspect of your game. And I feel like it's really doing that. But super fortunate with the way that things have turned out over the last couple days, and hopefully we'll be able to keep it up."
Patience will be key:
"Absolutely felt like I hit it very nicely today. It was obviously very challenging, and it's not an easy golf course to play. But I felt like we stayed very disciplined, stayed very patient, and tried to hit it to our targets all the time. We said beforehand see how many good shots we can hit today and see where that ends up at the end."
DeChambeau methodical at Pinehurst

Three players are one shot back, Bryson DeChambeau, Thomas Detry and round one leader Patrick Cantlay.
I don't know about anyone else but I've really enjoyed watching DeChambeau at the Majors this year. Maybe it's because he isn't a regular face on the PGA Tour or maybe it's just because he has toned down the bravado that used to accompany him around the course. His nickname of 'The Scientist' has come in handy this week, as he truly plots his way around Pinehurst No. 2, but ultimately like all the players you have to handle what the course throws at you:
"It's the penalizing aspect of this golf course. So when that happens, learning to say, hey, I've got to focus on executing next best shot that I can. I know it's cliche, it's simple, but that's legitimately what I just do and focus on. It's nice to have a caddie there just telling me, Hey, come on, focus, next shot, let's go. What's done is done. You can't control that."
Green-fingered Detry continues Major form

Thomas Detry may feel like an outsider this week but with a tied fourth finish at the PGA Championship, he knows how to perform on the Major stage. With his distinctive green glove, the German has remained calm throughout and with only 24 players shooting under par on Friday, he had one of the best with a three-under-par 67. How does he feel heading into the weekend?
"Pretty good. I mean, I was pretty much in that same position, what, a month ago at the PGA. I thought I did pretty well with it. My confidence is good. My play is good. I feel mentally stable as well. I think I've got all my chances. I think it's going to be a fun challenge. The course is not easy. There's going to be setbacks out there. You have to be prepared for it. It's all about trying to minimize the big numbers. When you're out of position, hit a shot that has a bad bounce, tough up-and-down, you have to accept the bogey in a way. I think that's going to be the key for the weekend."
Cantlay on the hunt for his first Major

Patrick Cantlay may be a little disappointed with a one-over-par 71 but he still remains very much in the chase as he looks to secure his first Major championship. After some disappointing finishes this season, the American is staying positive looking ahead to moving day.
"I think it's really important to play from the fairway. I got off track on a few holes, and it's tough to get it back in position. I think this golf course is going to play very challenging over the weekend, especially with the forecast that we have. So I think being smart and being patient, it's inevitable there's going to be some mistakes made, but that's just part of playing a U.S. Open."
McIlroy still in the mix



Rory McIlroy moved from his tie for first to a share of fifth with Tony Finau and Mattieu Pavon at three-under-par. A two-over-par 72 will not have been what he would have wanted, especially as he was going off in the morning which meant that the conditions were a little easier.
"I felt like the golf course plays a little more difficult, even though we were off in the morning. Some of the hole locations were definitely a little tougher. Sort of had to have your wits about you. I putted it off one green there on 17. Overall I felt like I did a pretty good job at keeping some of the mistakes off the scorecard. I wish I had converted a couple more of the chances. Hit the ball pretty well. I think only missed one fairway. So I had plenty of opportunities."
There are 15 players under par and within four shots of the lead. Making predictions about what will happen this weekend are hard to make.
Cut made at five-over-par
World Number one Scottie Scheffler made the cut on the number at five-over-par (as did Matthew Fitzpatrick and Brooks Koepka), 10 shots back, which even by his standards will prove too much. Big names to miss the cut included Robert MacIntyre (+6), Viktor Hovland (+6), Max Homa (+6), Justin Rose (+6), Tiger Woods (+7), Rickie Fowler (+8), Dustin Johnson (+9) and Justin Thomas (+11).
McIlroy mentioned plenty of opportunities, from what I was watching, for many the opportunities were there for par saves rather than birdie opportunities. Hot weather, firm conditions, there could be some scorecard wreckers incoming this weekend. Entertainment or torture or both, I will leave you to decide.
View the full 124th U.S. Open leaderboard here. Live coverage continues on Sky Sports Golf from 3:00pm BST.