Rory McIlroy has missed the cut at the Players Championship but Shane Lowry earned a reprieve as the cut-line dropped back one shot during Saturday's delayed second-round action, with Canadian Adam Svensson leading on nine-under-par at the halfway stage.
When Lowry clocked off on Friday, his tournament looked over with his two-over-par score outside the cut-line, but even with softer greens on Saturday morning, the situation changed and he will be about for round three and four, a great recovery following his opening round 77.
There was no such joy for Rory McIlroy who had eight holes remaining to pick up four shots when the delayed second round restarted.
McIlroy’s fightback began in fine fashion with a 14-foot birdie putt at the par-five 11th, but another opportunity from similar distance was pushed right at the next.
The Holywood golfer went direct at the 13th tee but had too much power in his tee shot and the ball landed out the back of the green and he had to make do with a par.
Pars followed at 14 and 15 before a birdie at 16th took McIlroy back to four-over-par. Two birdies and a moving cut line were required from there, but McIlroy’s tournament came to an end with a par and a closing bogey to finish on five-over-par.
Lowry went bogey, eagle, birdie, bogey, bogey in his opening five holes but sank three further birdies to move to -3 for the day by the second hole, his 11th.
Back-to-back bogeys on four and five were cancelled out with a pair of birdies but the Offaly man appeared to need to birdie the final par five to put himself in the mix and could only manage par, finishing on two over overall. In the end, that was enough.
Seamus Power hit three birdies but also five bogeys and a double on the way to a four-over 76, which left him well down the field on six over for the tournament.
Jon Rahm withdrew ahead of his second round because of illness.
The Spaniard, ranked world number one, had recorded a one-under-par 71 in his first round on Thursday at TPC Sawgrass.
Rahm tops the FedExCup standings having won three tournaments, most recently the Genesis Invitational last month.
Ben Griffin was the clubhouse leader on six under after a one-under-par round of 71 but Svensson overtook him in Saturday's early action.
