McIlroy surges on second nine to make cut, feel better going into weekend

Rory McIlroy stood on the 10th tee Friday wondering if he would even make the cut.

It was the perfect time for the world’s top-ranked player to find his form.

McIlroy followed a front-nine 40 with a second-nine 31 to get to 2-under for the tournament and more than safely through the cut. Before his run on the final nine holes, McIlroy was 3-over and in danger of not playing this weekend.

“It was definitely a tale of two nines,” McIlroy said. “I just didn’t have it on the front nine – started off with a bogey. I felt like anything I was trying to do out there wasn’t really going my way.

“I was standing on the 10th tee 3-over-par for the tournament and just trying to get myself in for the weekend.”

After the turn, McIlroy carded four birdies, an eagle and just one bogey.

On his eagle at the par-5 13th, his second shot landed about three feet from the hole for an easy eagle putt. Later, on 17, he made birdie despite overshooting the green on his second shot. He then birdied 18 to finish his 31.

“To shoot 5-under on that back nine, it makes me feel a bit better about myself going into the last 36 holes,” McIlroy said. “I’ll need to try and play a couple rounds like Jordan (Spieth) did over the weekend to have a chance.”

With Spieth impressively tearing through the course and the field with a 5-shot lead, McIlroy said he’s going to need more of what he got late Friday throughout the weekend.

He said he thought 10-under would probably be the winning score this week. Yet McIlroy, who’s seeking to finish the career Grand Slam, is 12 behind the 14-under Spieth.

However, McIlroy knows what can happen to a leader when things go wrong. In 2011, he shot 80 to plunge from what was a four-shot lead going into Sunday into a tie for 15th.

“It’ll take obviously something extraordinary from myself to get up there,” McIlroy said. “But you never know. I know better than most people what can happen with a lead around here.”