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McIlroy in the hunt at East Lake

Rory McIlroy celebrates his birdie putt on the 18th green © Getty Images

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Rory McIlroy hit a second-round 65 that left him two shots behind leader Billy Horschel at the halfway point of the Tour Championship.

After a bizarre incident that saw his tee shot at the 14th bounce off a tree into a spectator's pocket, world No.1 McIlroy closed his round with two birdies at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.

McIlroy's five-under 65 was the best round of the day and brought him a share of second place alongside Jason Day (67) and Chris Kirk (68) at six under for the tournament.

Last week's BMW Championship winner Horschel carded a second straight 66 to lead on eight under.

Victory on Sunday for Horschel, Kirk, Bubba Watson, Hunter Mahan or McIlroy would also seal the FedEx Cup title and the $10 million (£6.15m) bonus that goes with it.

However, Mahan is 14 shots adrift while Masters champion Watson is eight back, meaning Horschel will likely be looking over his shoulder at Kirk and McIlroy.

McIlroy birdied the second but bogeyed the fourth in a mixed start, before picking up shots on the sixth and seventh. He did, however, miss a birdie chance at the par-five ninth.

After the bizarre incident on the 14th, McIlroy then birdied the 17th for the second day in a row before holing out from 25 feet on the last.

"To finish like that with two birdies puts me in a great position going into the weekend," said McIlroy.

McIlroy earned his No.1 ranking by winning the Open, a World Golf Championship and the US PGA Championship in successive starts.

As much as he wants to end a great year on a high note, McIlroy appears to be playing with no concerns.

"Before coming into these FedEx Cup play-offs ... it was going to be a great season, anyway," he said. "I wanted to cap it off in style, and I've given myself a chance to do that over the next two days. I'm going into this week with nothing to lose. I'm the one that's got the two majors this year. I'm the one that's had the great season. Those are the guys that are trying to cap off a great season for themselves.

"No matter what happens over the weekend, it's going to be OK. But I still want to win this thing."

Justin Rose is two under after carding five birdies and one bogey in his 66, with Ryder Cup team-mate Sergio Garcia (71) a shot back.

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