Rory McIlroy has once again earned his place in the weekend of a major tournament, staging an impressive recovery at the PGA Championship. After a challenging opening round at Aronimink that saw him card a four-over 74, the Northern Irishman bounced back with a stellar three-under 67 on Friday to sit at one-over for the championship.

The six-time major winner now finds himself in a familiar position—chasing the lead with two rounds to play. And he's already plotting his strategy for the days ahead. When asked whether he would take a patient or aggressive approach in the third round, McIlroy shared his game plan: "It looks like conditions will be a little more favourable tomorrow and Sunday. It enables you to be a bit more aggressive and fire at some pins. But at the same time, it does not look like there is any rain forecast, so the course is going to get a bit firmer, which makes the greens play a bit more difficult anyway. I think you are going to have to pick and choose your spot."

McIlroy's turnaround was largely driven by a significant improvement with his driver—a club that has been both a weapon and a liability throughout his career. After struggling off the tee in the first round, he admitted, "I needed to try and find the feeling with the driver. I felt like a lot of the bogeys I made yesterday were from hitting it in the rough and wayward drives. I felt like I found a feel last night and I definitely drove it much better today and was able to give myself opportunities to make birdies, but was able to limit the mistakes and not have many bogeys on the card."

The numbers back up his assessment. McIlroy hit eight of 14 fairways on Friday compared to just five on Thursday, and he gained notable distance off the tee. It was a day of survival for many early starters, with world number one Scottie Scheffler among those battling cold and windy conditions. The weather improved as the day progressed, but difficult pin positions remained a common challenge for the field.

For McIlroy, it's all about finding the right balance between aggression and patience as he looks to climb the leaderboard. With conditions expected to be more favorable over the weekend, the stage is set for another thrilling chapter in his major championship journey.