Fansided

McIlroy in solid form at European PGA Championship

By David Salituro

AUGUSTA, GA - APRIL 07: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland walks off on the 18th green during the third round of the 2018 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 7, 2018 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
AUGUSTA, GA - APRIL 07: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland walks off on the 18th green during the third round of the 2018 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 7, 2018 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /
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Rory McIlroy builds three-shot lead at BMW PGA Championship with bogey-free 65.

Rory McIlroy was back to his old self today at the BMW PGA Championship.

His seven-under score of 65 saw him finish the second round three shots clear of Sebastien Gros and Sam Horsfield. His 36-hole score of 132 is the second-lowest in tournament history, behind only Paul McGinley in 2008.

McIlroy went through Wentworth Club in Surrey, England with seven birdies and no bogeys, his first career bogey-free round in the European Tour’s premier event. He won in 2014.

“It was one of the best rounds I’ve played this year, you know, ball-striking wise,” he said after the round. “It was a great round of golf. I had everything sort of firing today, and it was nice to take advantage of the opportunities I gave myself.”

McIlroy capped off a run of four straight birdies beginning at the 12th by holing a long putt at 15.

“Yeah, that was nice. There are never ones you expect to hole. Just, you’re trying to get it there with good speed and if it drops it drops. And, you know, that one was pretty much perfect. So that was a bit of a bonus,” he said.

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McIlroy has had disappointing finishes since winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March. He had a frustrating final round at The Masters where he was in the last pairing with Patrick Reed but finished fifth. He is coming off a missed cut at The PLAYERS Championship two weeks ago.

Paired with McIlroy, Lee Westwood and Alex Noren also went bogey-free on the round. McIlroy admits that it helps when your playing partners are also playing well.

“It’s nice whenever the group is like that, you can feed off one another a little bit. It was nice to be out there.”

Despite his own solid round, Noren was in awe of what McIlroy achieved.

“That’s the best round I’ve ever seen. I’m about to quit golf, I think,” he joked afterwards.

McIlroy will tee off for the third round tomorrow with Horsfield at 1:20 p.m. GMT (8:20 a.m. EST).

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