• Open Championship, Round Two

McIlroy suffers badly at windy St Andrews

Rory McIlroy began day two on top of the leaderboard © Getty Images

Enlarge

Related Links

• News: Casey hot on the heels of leader
  
• Profile: Paul Casey | Luke Donald | Sergio Garcia | Rory McIlroy | Phil Mickelson | Ian Poulter | Justin Rose | Lee Westwood | Tiger Woods

Leaderboard
Round Two gallery

Rory McIlroy plummeted down the leaderboard as blustery conditions played havoc with the second round of the Open Championship, with 40mph gusts causing a one-hour delay.

In much the same manner that a coin toss can heavily influence an international cricket Test played on a rapidly deteriorating wicket, the tee-off timings were crucial during Friday's play at St Andrews. Early starters such as clear leader Louis Oosthuizen and veteran Mark Calcavecchia made hay during the relatively mild morning weather, but McIlroy and Tiger Woods were among a number of players left in survival mode as they began their rounds in tandem with the delay.

Oosthuizen is in an extremely enviable position going into the weekend, after he backed up his brilliant opening-round 65 with a second-round 67 to head the leaderboard on 12-under-par. The early start seemed to galvanise the South African as he played a faultless front nine, which included three straight birdies from the fifth. Two bogeys tainted his scorecard a little but he picked up shots on the 10th, 12th, 14th and 18th to end the day with a five-shot lead.

Calcavecchia climbed the leaderboard into second place on seven-under after posting an impressive 67. The American found the consistency which was missing from his first round as he avoided dropping a single shot throughout his entire round.

Then come a group of players tied for third place on six-under, including English pair Paul Casey and Lee Westwood, both of whom were able to enjoy some of the day's more inviting conditions. At the turn, Casey looked to be on course to challenge McIlroy's sensational opening-round 63, having hit five birdies - three of which arrived on the first three holes. But the world No. 10 could only muster one birdie on the back nine and a poor shot on 17 led to him dropping three strokes to halt his charge and leave him ruing a missed opportunity.

Westwood, still nursing that swollen ankle, maintained a solid approach throughout the round as he returned to the clubhouse without a single red blot on his scorecard. Westwood has only bogeyed one of the 36 holes so far, and he remains in contention six shots off Oosthuizen going into Saturday.

For McIlroy, Friday's second round will prove a learning curve as the long day seemed to affect his focus. Like all of the late tee-offs, the Northern Ireland starlet had awful conditions to contend with, but even regulatory short putts escaped him as the delays disrupted his rhythm. Beginning with a bogey on the fourth hole, McIlroy dropped eight in total, falling from nine-under to one-under after shooting a disappointing 80.

Tiger Woods was impressive despite carding a 73 © Getty Images

Enlarge

Woods can afford to feel satisfied with his day's work, recovering from a poor start to remain in contention on four-under. Woods three-putted the opening two holes, but he had avenged those bogeys by the turn, at which point he dug in deep to ensure he carded a one-over 73. A magnificent putt for eagle at the 18th narrowly evaded the hole, but he will nevertheless remain a significant threat in the final rounds.

Jon Daly, who roared out of the blocks to finish six-under on day one, had similar chances during the second round but his putter deserted him as he ended up carding a four-over 76. Daly birdied seven holes on Thursday, but he could find only one 24 hours later to drop back to two-under for the tournament.

Justin Rose, heavily tipped as the form player ahead of this week's competition, failed to make the cut on three-under. Rose sent his ball out of bounds on the 16th, and his 36-ball score proved one shot too many. Fellow Briton Ian Poulter is safe but will once again feel hard done by after he produced another fine round of golf for no reward, shooting a 73 to leave him on level-par.

Phil Mickelson narrowly avoided the cut despite improving on his first-round score. The world No. 2 took the good form showed at the last few holes on Thursday into his second round and looked set to post a competitive score. A birdie at the third was followed up with an eagle at the fifth, but then the first of four bogeys pegged him back. He went out in 38 to finish with a 71, sending the American into the weekend on level-par.

Luke Donald also survived by the narrowest of margins after shooting a 72. Too many pars appeared to have cost the Englishman as he finished Friday on one-over, but the cut came at two-over. US Open champion Graeme McDowell is in better shape, after two birdies on his final three holes helped him to a healthy 68. McDowell is joined on five-under by Miguel Angel Jimenez, who putted wonderfully for a 67.

Sergio Garcia also has reason to feel satisfied after carding a second successive 71. Garcia, who was runner-up at The Open in 2007, was inconsistent but showed glimpses of the brilliance that saw him climb to number two in the world rankings back in 2008.

Ernie Els, Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Padraig Harrington and Angel Cabrera all missed the cut when it was finally determined early on Saturday morning. A significant number of players returned at 6.30am to finish their rounds after the light faded at St Andrews, and the suspension affected Steve Tiley, who was level with Westwood after 10 holes but fell back to one-over after shooting a 79 on Saturday morning.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.