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Rory McIlroy tees off on the 12th today. Ben Brady/INPHO
Golf
Rory McIlroy in tie for third at Irish Open, with Shane Lowry four off the lead
England’s Laurie Canter is the clubhouse leader on five-under.
RORY MCILROY IS firmly in contention after he has reached the halfway mark in the Irish Open, one off the clubhouse leaders Laurie Canter and Todd Clements at Royal County Down.
McIlroy’s one-under round of 70 today sees him on four-under just behind the English pair. He began his round on the 10th and was level par for his front nine with a bogey on 14 and a birdie on 15. An eagle on the par-five first launched him into contention as he moved to five-under, before dropping a shot on the fifth and watching a series of birdie attempts just drop short.
Rory McIlroy finishes his round with a brilliantly read monster putt that, again, is inches away from dropping. He signs for a round of 70 and is one shot off the lead. pic.twitter.com/bB9m8b9Yy5
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) September 13, 2024
Shane Lowry dropped a shot on his last hole but still recorded a two-under-par 69 today in his second round. The Offaly native is on one-under overall and is four off the target set by Canter and Clements.
Lowry began with a birdie on the 12th, bogeyed the 16th, before generating serious momentum with three birdies in succession on the 18th, 1st and 2nd holes. His par attempt at the last missed out and he had to be content with a round of 69.
Shane Lowry was relatively pleased with his second round at the Irish Open but admits that he has to get closer to the flag with his approach shots if he's to have a chance of winning this weekend.
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) September 13, 2024
📺 Watch LIVE on RTÉ2 & the RTÉplayer#RTEgolf #IrishOpen pic.twitter.com/DumIuADHjf
McIlroy is joined on four-under by Spaniard Alejandro Del Rey, who set a blistering pace to be clear of the field for long stages this morning before recording a disastrous quadruple bogey on the par-four 15th that brought him back to the pack.
Del Rey looked the one to catch after he followed up on yesterday’s round of 67, with an eagle on the first. He recorded birdies on 5 and 7, and while he dropped a shot on the ninth, he grabbed another birdie on the 12th to stand on eight-under at one stage, before the 15th changed the course of his round.
Daniel Brown, currently early into this second round, is also on the four-under mark.
The cut is projected to be one-over with Tom McKibbin finishing his round just on that mark. McKibbin was two-under for this round today to see him move up to the cut line, while amateur Seán Keeling is two-over today and is one-over for the tournament.
Conor Purcell’s round of 75 today leaves him at +5 overall and set to miss the weekend, as will Mark Power after his round of 77 saw him drop to +1o.
Seamus Power and Padraig Harrington are part of the players in action this afternoon.
More to follow…
Written by Fintan O’Toole and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.
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