Pablo Larrazábal vowed to enjoy his weekend after insisting only a Spanish player could have made the cut at the US PGA Championship playing how he did.
Larrazábal's one-under-par first round saw him hit only three fairways as he channelled the escapologist spirit of the late, great Seve Ballesteros.
That meant he could afford to shoot 75 in his second round on Saturday and still prepare for two more days at Oak Hill, with the cut set to land just outside his four-over-par total.
"I am feeling great. I didn’t play the best so to make the cut is something that is very positive for me," he said.
"My game didn’t suit this kind of golf course. I am probably the shortest hitter out here and not the straightest.
"Yesterday three fairways and one under par was one of those miracles that you do only if you’re Spanish. The only way you shoot under par is if you’re Spanish. The best club in my bag was my mind. I managed to make a lot of putts."
It is Larrazábal's first made cut at a Major Championship since the 2012 Open Championship at Royal Lytham and St Anne's, after 11 successive second-round eliminations.
With several of this week's pace-setters, including Corey Conners, Scottie Scheffler and Keegan Bradley, averaging close to or above 300 yards off the tee this season, Larrazábal acknowledged he has to find a different way of posting a score.
"Happy to be here for the weekend," he said. "If I can get my driver working, I can shoot a couple of low rounds and climb the leaderboard.
"It’s all about having fun and play the way Pablo plays. Pablo misses fairways and misses greens but fights.
"If I keep the fighting spirit, that’s my essential, that’s how I play golf. Don’t try to play like all these guys who hit it 350 yards in the air. Pablo hits it 280 yards and is a fighter."
