In a somewhat up and down round, a two-under 69 from Rory McIlroy left him seven shots behind leader Scottie Scheffler on three-under after day two of the Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
The world number one shot a sensational 64 - eight birdies and a single bogey in the low round of the day - to move to ten under par, one shot clear of England's Matt Fitzpatrick.
Fitzpatrick carded 66 to briefly lead before Scheffler birdied 16 and 17 while China's Haotong Li (67) and 2023 winner Brian Harman (65) are joint third on eight under.
Shane Lowry, champion the last time the tournament was held here, initially appeared to have shot a second successive 70 but, was later adjuged to have moved the ball with his practice swing on the 12th.
That incurred a two-shot penalty, dropping him to even par overall and in a share of 34th, a devastating blow to his chances of making a weekend challenge.
Pádraig Harrington (+9) was well outside the cut-line of one over after his second-round 76, as was another former Open champion Darren Clarke (+6), while Tom McKibbin will also miss out on the weekend after a 71 left him on +3.
Danish identical twins Rasmus and Nicolai Hojgaard made it a family affair after both shooting under par to sit inside the top 10.
Rasmus, younger by a couple of minutes, carded a 68 which was one better than his sibling and lifted him to the group of five players, also including Robert MacIntyre and Tyrrell Hatton, on five under.
Nicolai is one back in a tie for 10th a longside Tony Finau.
McIlroy, again attracting huge galleries, scrambled to a one-under 70 on Thursday and it was a similar story early in his second round as he mixed mistakes and brilliance.
The 36-year-old, bidding to win his second Open 11 years after his first, had the crowds roaring with a birdie on the first and did brilliantly to salvage a par five at the second after slicing his drive into deep rough and taking a penalty drop.
He wasted several opportunities with careless putts before birdies at the 12th and 14th lifted him to three under, alongside Jordan Smith, Keegan Bradley, Lee Westwood and Sam Burns.
Since 1970, 89% of Open winners have been within four of the lead after 36 holes so McIlroy will have to buck that trend, but he is feeling good about his game.
"Another solid day. A couple under, improved a little bit on yesterday, hit it in play a little bit more off the tee, which was nice to have some looks out of the fairway and into some of these greens," McIlroy said afterwards.
"Yeah, it was a good day. I feel like I maybe could be a couple closer to the lead, but overall in a decent position heading into the weekend."
"I feel like I let myself down (in 2019 when he missed the cut) more than I let the fans down, but I definitely felt like it was... yeah, it was a hard pill to swallow, but at the same time, I left myself too much to do," he added.
"Then this time, yeah, I've just gotten better. I know what I need to do to get the best out of myself in an environment like that. I've been somewhat close to my best over the first two days in little bits here and there. I'm going to need to have it all under control and have it sort of all firing over the weekend to make a run."
Fitzpatrick's impressive 66 put him in an excellent position to end a 33-year wait for an English winner of The Open, but he will have to get past the daunting figure of Scheffler if he is to end the drought.
Just minutes after the 2022 US Open champion returned to the top of a major leaderboard, having posted a nine-under-par total at Royal Portrush, his American rival reeled off back-to-back birdies at 16 and 17 to snatch the lead from the Sheffield golfer's grasp.
May’s US PGA winner looked in ominous form in getting to 10 under – his round of 64 included eight birdies, a missed putt at the last for another and just one bogey – and he looked as unruffled as ever, even as the heaviest rain of the week drenched the links for a good 45 minutes.
The last world number one to lead or share the lead after 36 holes of an Open was Tiger Woods in 2006.
He went on to win and on this evidence you would not back against the bookies’ favourite to claim his first Claret Jug and the third leg of a career Grand Slam.
But if Fitzpatrick can maintain his rediscovered form, he may just have a chance.
Starting at four under, as one of the first-day co-leaders, he was the first to reach double figures following four successive birdies, having turned in a two-under 34.
His round exploded into life on the back nine and, when he hit a brilliant approach at the short 13th to six feet for a fourth birdie in a row, he was 10 under and two clear.
He gave a shot back at the 14th and missed the chance to restore his two-shot cushion with an inexplicable miss from three feet at the 17th but redeemed himself with a superb 23ft par save on the last, only for Scheffler to come charging past him.
Giving it everything until the end.
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 18, 2025
Fitzpatrick saves par to remain at nine-under going into the weekend. pic.twitter.com/xA7vcyLcBH
"I’m giving myself an opportunity to win the golf tournament, but there’s still a hell of a long way to go," said the 30-year-old Yorkshireman, who will play alongside Scheffler in Saturday’s final group.
"Obviously the aim of the game is to stay in it for as long as possible and hopefully you can pull away right at the death. I’m 50% there.
"I wouldn’t say I necessarily feel as much pressure (as Scheffler). He’s going to have the expectation to go out and dominate.
"He’s an exceptional player. He’s world number one and we’re seeing Tiger-like stuff. I think the pressure is for him to win the golf tournament."
Scheffler's 64 was his lowest round in a major and he is the only player to birdie the notoriously difficult short 16th twice to be five under for the par threes this week.
"I felt like I hit a few more fairways than I did yesterday, hit some really nice iron shots and was able to hole some putts," said the American, who in his pre-tournament press conference on Tuesday had spoken about being unfulfilled by his success in golf.
"I feel I am hitting the ball pretty solid and I am excited for the rest of the tournament. We are only halfway done."
Harman proved his liking for links golf again when he moved top of the leaderboard for a period after shooting a 65 with Li alongside him on eight-under par.
The American lifted the Claret Jug at a soggy Royal Liverpool two years ago but arrived on the Antrim coast under the radar after enjoying little success since his first major triumph.
"The golf overall fan knowledge over here is unbelievable," said Harman. "They all play. They love the game. And being an Open champion over here is really cool. They know who you are. They have respect for you.
"Like I said, I love coming over here. As far as golf, it's as pure as it gets."
It took 32 holes of the tournament for Li to pick up his first bogey, but it moved him back alongside Harman.
The world number 26 Harman birdied the first two holes and picked up four more shots, sinking an eight-foot putt at the last to complete a flawless round of 65 and move to eight under par.
Meanwhile, Harrington will not be around for the weekend with McKibbin packing up early too after disappointing second rounds for the duo.
The Irish pair, playing alongside Denmark's Nicolai Hojgaard, were outside the projected cut-line of two-over with McKibbin one shot outside it and hoping it fell a stroke before the close of play.
The 22-year-old LIV golfer made the perfect start as he rattled in a putt with pace at the first, and he kept things steady with a run of six pars.
However, the main damage was done with a double bogey on the eighth after he leaked right off the tee.
Further bogeys at 11 and 14 would leave him in serious bother and while he did grab a shot back with a fine approach and a nine-foot putt at the 15th, he was unable to find another shot coming in.
Harrington, meanwhile, shot a second-round 76 to finish nine over for the tournament.
The two-time champion started with back-to-back pars before a horror show on the par-three third, with the steep contours and difficult pin position eventually leading to a triple bogey.
That left him on seven-over par and realistically out of contention for making the weekend, although birdies at seven and 17th were bright spots on a card that included four more bogeys.
Additional reporting: Reuters/PA
