Northern Ireland‘s Rory McIlroy shares the halfway lead in DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. (Photo: Getty/DP World Tour)
Rory McIlroy strengthened his bid for a record-tying eighth Race to Dubai title after carding a second-round 70 to share the halfway lead with Ryder Cup teammate Tyrrell Hatton at the DP World Tour Championship.
McIlroy made an early charge up the leaderboard with three birdies in his first eight holes before adding another at the tenth. However, the Northern Ireland found the closing stretch increasingly difficult as windy conditions made scoring a challenge on the Earth Course at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
Bogeys at the 12th, 16th and 17th threatened to undo his progress, but a birdie at the last brought him back alongside Hatton on five-under-par, who had set the clubhouse target earlier in the afternoon.
“I played very solidly for those first 11 holes. And then 12 felt like the first time I'd really put myself out of position. And once you do start putting yourself out of position on this golf course, this setup, these conditions, it starts to get very, very difficult,” said McIlroy.
“Yeah, I mean, it's very easy to make bogeys out there. Just a little bit off, you know, if you miss a fairway, or even if you miss a green, the lies around the greens aren't very good. And then you're sort of having to think about are you going to try to putt it or chip it or bump and run it or fly it.
“I want to win this tournament. You know, I've won four times down the road at Emirates. It'd be nice to win four times here.
“I want to win the tournament. And if I win the tournament, that's all I can do. It doesn't really matter what any of the other guys do, you know, if they play well enough. But if I go and I win the first trophy on Sunday, then the second trophy should take care of itself.”
With Race to Dubai leader Eugenio Chacarra tied 11th for the tournament after the first two days, there was a significant momentum swing in favour of McIlroy, who is currently projected to top the Ranking and capture his fifth straight Race to Dubai crown.
McIlroy boasts an impressive record at the Earth Course, having won the DP World Tour Championship three times and finished runner-up to Matt Fitzpatrick in a play-off last year.
A fourth victory at the venue would secure both the tournament title and the Harry Vardon Trophy, extending his remarkable run of Race to Dubai success.
Hatton will have his own ambitions heading into the weekend as he looks to claim his first DP World Tour Championship title after coming close on a number of occasions.
The Englishman, an eight-time DP World Tour winner and serial Rolex Series champion, made an excellent start with birdies at the first two holes before picking up another at the ninth to reach the turn in 33.
A bogey at the tenth briefly stalled momentum, but Hatton responded with a birdie-par-bogey-birdie finish to sign for a 69.
Hatton said: “Overall it was pretty solid. A couple of really poor tee shots to the one up seven and the one, what hole was it,12. Just, yeah, weird shots. Actually struggled with a couple of those in round one in Abu Dhabi last week.
“So, yeah, weird to see that that kind of crept in. Made me feel a little bit uncomfortable with driver for the rest of the round, to be honest. I mean, like the tee shot that I had on 18 is more of just being reluctant to see that left one. Yeah, a bit of a weird round in that sense, but fairly good score.
“He's got an amazing record around this golf course (McIlroy). It just sets up pretty well for him. I'm happy enough with where I'm placed after two rounds. Hopefully I can play better over the weekend and give myself more birdie opportunities.
First round leader Joost Luiten is one shot behind on four-under with Kristoffer Reitan. The trio of Mikael Lindberg, Freddy Schott and Victor Perez are a shot further back.
Three-time winner Jon Rahm sits in a good position alongside compatriot David Puig and South African Jayden Schaper at two under, while Eugenio Chacarra is part of a group of four players tied for 11th on one-under.
Round Two Scores
139 T HATTON (ENG) 70 69, R MCILROY (NIR) 69 70,
140 K REITAN (NOR) 70 70, J LUITEN (NED) 67 73,
141 M LINDBERG (SWE) 72 69, F SCHOTT (GER) 69 72, V PEREZ (FRA) 69 72,
142 J SCHAPER (RSA) 74 68, J RAHM (ESP) 71 71, D PUIG (ESP) 70 72,
143 A MERONK (POL) 74 69, E CHACARRA (ESP) 72 71, F LAPORTA (ITA) 69 74, J OLESEN (DEN) 68 75,
144 N ELVIRA (ESP) 73 71, N N?RGAARD (DEN) 72 72, S NORRIS (RSA) 71 73, C HILL (SCO) 71 73, A SCOTT (AUS) 71 73, O LINDELL (FIN) 70 74, M JORDAN (ENG) 70 74, A OTAEGUI (UAE) 70 74,
145 A SULLIVAN (ENG) 76 69, J DEAN (ENG) 71 74,
146 M WALLACE (ENG) 72 74, D HILLIER (NZL) 71 75, D BRADBURY (ENG) 70 76,
147 H DU PLESSIS (RSA) 77 70, T FLEETWOOD (ENG) 76 71, C JARVIS (RSA) 74 73, G FORREST (SCO) 73 74, M COUVRA (FRA) 72 75, M ARMITAGE (ENG) 71 76, J CAMPILLO (ESP) 70 77,
148 B WIESBERGER (AUT) 75 73, J WINTHER (DEN) 75 73, R FOX (NZL) 74 74, D BRYANT (USA) 74 74, K KANEKO (JPN) 74 74, E FERGUSON (SCO) 74 74, G DE LEO (ITA) 69 79,
149 J GUERRIER (FRA) 77 72, F LACROIX (FRA) 74 75, A HIDALGO (ESP) 73 76,
150 A RAI (ENG) 76 74, Y KATSURAGAWA (JPN) 76 74, A AYORA (ESP) 74 76,
151 M ELVIRA (ESP) 74 77,
152 P REED (USA) 75 77,
159 T LAWRENCE (RSA) 77 82,