Rockford Lutheran grad Jeff Kellen recovers on 2nd day, shoots 72 in PGA Championship
Jeff Kellen went out the way he wanted to begin.
It was not enough to play the entire tournament, but it was still a great way to finish the golf experience of a lifetime.
Kellen played his final 12 holes in 3-under-par Friday to shoot a 1-over 72 at Valhalla Golf Club in the second round of the PGA Championship. Kellen was only the third Rockford golfer to play in one of the sport's four Major championships in the last 45 years. Kellen, who qualified by finishing in the top 20 at the national tournament for PGA teaching pros in Frisco, Texas, had shot an 87 in the opening round Thursday.
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Kellen is a 35-year-old Rockford Lutheran grad who is now the head pro at North Shore Country Club in Glenview. He was a three-time all-conference golfer in the Missouri Valley Conference in college at Illinois State. He began his career as a teaching pro as the top assistant at Mauh-Nah-Tee-See.
Kellen started on the back nine Friday and made bogey on No. 11 and 12. He went to 4-over on the day with a double on 15. But he never went backward again, starting with a birdie on 16.
He made par on his next seven holes, then strung together back-to-back birdies on No. 6 and No. 7.
Among other things, Kellen can now say he beat Tiger Woods in a round of golf. Woods shot 77 Friday after an opening 72. After shooting the second-worst round out of 155 golfers Thursday, Kellen rebounded to beat more than 40 pros with his Friday score.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford's Jeff Kellen finishes PGA 3-under par on his final 12 holes
