92nd US PGA CHAMPIONSHIP:WHY SHOULD we be surprised any more? Yesterday, for the second day running, a dense fog drifted in from Lake Michigan to mischievously cloak the sand hills here at Whistling Straits in its damp grip – but, as the cover lifted to allow those with aspirations to claiming the Wanamaker Trophy finally get on with the task at hand, a clearer picture was revealed in this 92nd US PGA Championship.

It is this: players these days are no longer intimidated by contending in majors.

And, so, with the prospect of a Monday finish looming – due to a total of six hours being lost over the past two days to the fog and the less than appealing forecast of disruptive thunderstorms rolling in over the weekend – the jostling at the business end of the leader board featured a plethora of wannabe major champions. Matt Kuchar. Bryce Molder. Dustin Johnson. Seung-Yul Noh. Nick Watney.

So, too, Rory McIlroy.

The fog-induced delays to play for the past two days may have been an irritant, but the play on the course has matched the spectacular setting. It’s almost as if the old-timers, but especially the new, have been inspired; with the result that the course, all 7,507 yards of it, has been courted by a large number of suitors.

The charm offensive has been led by Kuchar, a player set to make his Ryder Cup debut in the match at Celtic Manor in October. The 32-year-old Floridian – with two career wins on the US Tour, the 2002 Honda Classic and the 2009 Turning Stone Championship – played alongside European captain Colin Montgomerie for the first two rounds.

While Monty struggled to find any of the old form that once made him a European powerhouse, he was impressed with what he saw of Kuchar. “He’s a very, very solid player – as solid a player as I have played with on the US Tour for a long time,” observed Montgomerie. “He’ll be a great asset to their Ryder Cup team, I am sure.”

Montgomerie, incidentally, also intimated that it was “unlikely” that Sergio Garcia would have any act or part in his ‘wild card’ deliberations heading into the Ryder Cup.

Kuchar added a second round 69 to his opening 67 for a midway total of 136, eight under par, which gave him the clubhouse lead and he finished his round just as the first rain drops fell.

Of course, there’s a long way to go before the coronation of the champion to succeed YE Yang, who triumphed at Hazeltine last year. In fact, the cut won’t be decided until today when the second round is completed, with the likes of Tiger Woods and Pádraig Harrington among those set for early-morning alarm clocks to complete their second rounds.

McIlroy, one of the pre-championship favourites, was leading the Irish challenge. Having signed for a first round 71, the 21-year-old Ulsterman finished with a second round 68 (to be five-under for the championship) but, disappointingly for him, failed to birdie any of the four par 5s on the card. Still, he was well-positioned heading into the weekend, his aggressiveness exemplified by driving the 355-yard sixth where he left his 25-footer eagle putt short and had to be satisfied with a tap-in birdie.

Unfortunately for US Open champion Graeme McDowell, the magic of Pebble Beach failed to find its way to the Mid-West region and he was destined to miss the cut.

Once the morning fog lifted, which caused a delay of two hours and 40 minutes before the first round resumed after fading light had resulted in a suspension of play on Thursday, the conditions were excellent for scoring – provided players kept the ball on the fairways. Any waywardness of the tee was punished.

No fewer than 43 players shot sub-par scores in the first round and while trouble lurked for any misdirected shots, the receptive greens combined with just a gentle breeze to allow players to be aggressive on their approaches into the greens.

Nobody demonstrated this art beater than Kuchar, a player whose all-round game has improved immensely this season. He has not missed a cut on tour since the Quail Hollow Championship in May and has had four top-10 finishes in his last six outings. Despite only getting five and a half hours sleep after the delayed play on Thursday, Kuchar showed no ill -effects yesterday. “I’m not a big fan of less than eight hours sleep. I never wake up in the best of spirits on five hours sleep, my body just feels funny.”

In a second round which comprised four birdies and a bogey, Kuchar – a former US Amateur champion – played exemplary golf which enabled him to move into serious contention for a maiden major title as South Korean Noh and Nick Watney were among those in chief pursuit, while England’s Simon Khan – winner of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in May – also moved into a challenging position heading into the weekend.

Bryce Molder, too, was well positioned. Despite bogeying the last, the American shot a second round 67 to make a dramatic move up the leaderboard and was positioned just three shots adrift. Whatever, it should prove enthralling – especially with Mr McIlroy in the thick of the chase.