Rory McIlroy rues missed chances but still climbs leaderboard in Dubai

Rory McIlroy justifiably felt a bogey-free second round of 66 could have been even better as he moved into contention for a third Slync.io Dubai Desert Classic title.

McIlroy, who won his first DP World Tour title at Emirates Golf Club in 2009 and lifted the trophy again in 2015, chipped in for an eagle on the 13th and also made four birdies to finish seven under par, four behind leader Justin Harding.

But the four-time major winner also let slip a number of opportunities on the layout’s new putting surfaces, most notably three-putting from 48 feet after driving the green on the 351-yard second hole.

“Could have been way lower,” McIlroy said when asked to assess his score.

“I certainly hit the ball well enough for it to be lower. I missed a few opportunities but with the way these new greens are, they get a bit chewed up in the afternoons and start to wiggle a little bit if there isn’t a lot of speed on them.

“So yeah, I certainly hit the ball as good as I’ve done in a long time, and it could have been a few better but 66 this afternoon is a good score and sets me up for a nice weekend.

“With how I ended last year, I certainly found something, got a bit of momentum. I won on the PGA Tour and had a really good chance to win here in Dubai at the end of last season. It feels good.

“There’s so many ebbs and flows in this game and the career is so long that it’s sort of hard to compare one year to the next and how you’re feeling and how you’re hitting it.

“But I think looking back on my last 12, 14 years or whatever it’s been, the body of work is there, and I’ve played well when I haven’t felt so good and I played poorly when I felt really good.

“It’s just a matter of keep showing up each and every day and try to put the