Rory McIlroy shot a second-round 67 at Royal Birkdale on Friday to move comfortably inside the cut line and warned his rivals that he is back in Claret Jug contention. The Northern Irishman, who had complained about 'dead grass' on the course after his opening round, responded with four birdies and one bogey to sit at one-under par for the tournament, seven strokes behind clubhouse leader Lucas Herbert at the halfway stage.
McIlroy's Comeback Round
McIlroy started the day two over par and seven shots off the pace after a difficult first round. He knew he needed a strong start to get back into contention, but at one point during his round, he looked in danger of missing the cut. However, he rallied with birdies on the 8th and 9th holes to gain momentum.
“Yeah, it was a little better. I felt like I had momentum coming off the end of the front nine there with the two birdies on 8 and 9. I felt like I stole a little bit on the back,” McIlroy said. “Look, I think the main objective today was to be here for the weekend, which I am. I felt like I left a couple out there. Then you look at the board and you see a couple of 62s, and you feel like you could have done a bit better. Yeah, get off to a decent start tomorrow.”
Warning to Rivals
The 37-year-old, seeking his first major title since 2014, warned that his experience could prove crucial over the weekend. “There's a couple of guys up there, this will be sort of their first experience of playing in the lead at a major championship on the weekend, so there's obviously some that are very experienced at it like Cam and like Sam as well,” he said. “Yeah, I think if I can get off to a decent start tomorrow, be 4- or 5-under for the tournament, I'll be right in it.”
Wind Direction Key
McIlroy said the direction of the wind would dictate his approach for the remaining rounds. “It depends on the conditions and the way the wind direction is. I think I've driven the ball so well the last two days. I think anytime I can get a driver in my hand, I'm going to try to. I just feel like with how I'm feeling with the driver, I think it's a big advantage if I can get the ball down there and take out some of these fairway bunkers,” he explained. “I'll continue to do that when I can, and then I'm still trying to figure out these greens a little bit. Yeah, I've struggled the last couple of days. It was a little better today, but still didn't feel 100 percent comfortable. Hopefully try to figure that out as the week goes on.”
