'Nothing short of pathetic' - Tyrrell Hatton falters at BMW Championship, Rory McIlroy makes forward move

Rory McIlroy shrugged off an early bogey and a slightly cold putter to keep himself in the mix after 36 holes of the BMW Championship. The four-time major winner’s approach play was sensational and he gave himself a look at a host of birdie chances, but only converted five of them. Ad Two bogeys saw him sign for a 68 for the second day in a row, and well within striking distance of the leaders — albeit with a host of players still out on the course.

BMW Championship'Ryder Cup is definitely something I would love to play in' — Straka3 HOURS AGO McIlroy had ground to make up after his ugly triple bogey on Thursday. Hopes of a fast start were dashed by a missed birdie putt on the first and a bogey on the second. At that point he was down at two-under, but the third hole has proved to be a gift for the players and McIlroy got back on track with a birdie on the par five.

McIlroy’s driving was towards its imperious best on Friday and excellent tee shots on six and eight yielded birdies to lift him to five-under for the tournament. The Irishman missed makeable birdie chances on 10 and 13, and trudged off the par-five 14th with a bogey on the card. It was not the ideal scene setter for the walk to the 15th, a hole he made triple bogey at on the previous day.

On this occasion, with the pin on the left, he went for a draw rather than a fade. And instead of finding the water, he sent his tee shot to within four feet for a tap-in birdie. McIlroy could arguably have birdied the final four holes, but he passed up chances at 16 and 17 before chipping in on 18 to get to six-under.