Nicolai Hojgaard holds a three-shot lead at the halfway stage of the DP World Tour Championship, with Rory McIlroy in contention as he looks to close out Race to Dubai victory.
Hojgaard carded an eagle and five birdies during a bogey-free 65 at Jumeirah Golf Estates, moving the 2023 champion to 12 under, with reigning champion McIlroy part of the logjam tied-second after an eventful round.
McIlroy mixed six birdies with three bogeys during an erratic 69, where he struggled with his approach play and holed several clutch putts to avoid falling further behind, but remains well-placed to win the season finale for a fourth time.
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Justin Rose scrambled an unlikely par at the par-five 14th with a monster putt, having found water with his second shot
The world No 2 shares second place with Ryder Cup team-mates Justin Rose and Shane Lowry, along with Rasmus Neegaard-Petersen and Daniel Hillier, while Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre, Alex Noren and Laurie Canter sit a further shot back on eight under.
McIlroy also looks to win the Race to Dubai for a fourth successive year, which would leave him one behind Colin Montgomerie’s record of eight Order of Merit titles, with Tyrrell Hatton and Marco Penge the only players who could still finish above him as Europe’s top golfer.
Hatton – who requires a victory and for results to go his way – heads into the weekend in tied-11th after a five-under 67, while Penge – 767 points in the season-long standings – is tied-44th on level par and seemingly out of Race to Dubai contention.
Ryder Cup stars chase Hojgaard in Dubai
Hojgaard started the day three strokes back but quickly hit the front by following an opening-hole birdie with a brilliant eagle at the par-five next, before three birdies in a five-hole stretch from the fifth seeing him race to the turn in 30.
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Nicolai Hojgaard was joined by a cat on the tee box at the DP World Tour Championship
The Dane took advantage of the par-five 14th and scrambled a par at the last to close out his blemish-free round, with Hojgaard chasing a fourth DP World Tour victory and first since winning this event two years ago.
Compatriot Neergaard-Petersen played a three-hole stretch in four under – temporarily lifting him within one of Hojgaard – only to bogey the par-five last to fall three behind, while Rose briefly lead after holing a 65-footer among five birdies in his opening seven holes.
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Justin Rose holed a huge birdie putt on the par-three sixth during an eventful second round at the DP World Tour Championship
Rose holed another monster putt to save par at the 14th – having found water off the tee, with Lowry also posting a blemish-free round, as McIlroy bolstered his hopes of becoming the first player since Henrik Stenson to win back-to-back editions of the DP World Tour Championship.
McIlroy bounced back from an opening-hole bogey to birdie par-fives on the front nine, then cancelled out a bogey at the next with back-to-back birdies around the turn to move back up the leaderboard.
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Rory McIlroy mixed six birdies with three bogeys during a second-round 69 in Dubai
The Masters champion failed to get up and down from the sand to save par at the 12th but posted successive birdies from the 14th, with McIlroy going on to win three of the previous six occasions he has started this event with two rounds in the 60s.
Four strokes separate the top 10 at the halfway stage, while first-round leader Michael Kim slipped out of the top 20 following an opening-round 64 with a four-over 76.
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Rory McIlroy was left frustrated after struggling to get out of the rough on the par-five last
Patience rewarded for Mcllroy in ‘tougher’ conditions
Rory McIlroy (nine under, tied-second): “I had to battle a little more today than I did yesterday. If you looked at the scoring yesterday compared to today, it is a little bit tougher.
“I missed a couple more fairways today. And when I did miss the fairways, I got some really bad lies, like the worst lies I’ve seen this week. I felt like I showed my scoring skills today, battled well, stayed patient, and got the ball up-and-down when I needed to.”
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Rory McIlroy explains how he dealt with the ‘challenging’ conditions during the second round of the DP World Tour Championship
Nicolai Hojgaard (12 under, first): “It’s one of my favourite tournaments and favourite courses to play. It’s good to be back this year in a little bit of form. Just happy to be here.
“I know there’s plenty of chances out there. It’s easy to make a silly bogey out of being a little bit too aggressive, so trying to navigate my way out there a little bit. Staying patient has probably been the highlight so far.”
Who will win the Race to Dubai? Watch the DP World Tour Championship live on Sky Sports. Live coverage continues Saturday from 7am on Sky Sports Golf. Stream the DP World Tour and more with no contract.
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