Second wind for McIlroy at St Andrews?
Play has resumed at the Open Championship, after high winds had forced a temporary suspension earlier this afternoon.
In truth, however, there's been little let up in the force of the winds buffeting St Andrews, with Rory McIlroy set for a testing afternoon as he tries to conjure a round to match yesterday's impressive nine-under-par opener.
The Northern Irishman has just carded his first dropped shot of the first two rounds, bogeying the 4th to fall to eight-under-par for the tournament. And while there's still time for the 21-year-old to rack up a decent score - McIlroy only really got going with his eagle on the 9th yesterday - that wind is certain to hinder his bid to reassert himself at the top of the leaderboard.
Not that McIlroy is the only player feeling the chill wind right now. John Daly has slipped to six-over for the tournament after bogeys on the 6th and 7th, while Tiger Woods got off to a less than ideal start, a pair of bogeys leaving him two-over today, three-under for the tournament after two holes.
South Africa's Ernie Els has endured a similarly irksome opening, with two bogeys in the first three holes. And England's Justin Rose bogeyed the opener too, one-over-par for the day, one-under for the Championship.
Japan's 18-year-old marvel Ryo Ishikawa did look like bucking the negative trend, picking up a birdie at the 2nd - but Ishikawa promptly bogeyed the next, staying on level par for the day, four-under in total. At least Ian Poulter has managed to stay under par, the Englishman one-under on the day with a birdie on the fourth, meaning his current standing is two-under for the tournament.
But it's bad news for Luke Donald; the Englishman is expected to miss the cut, having finished one-over-par for the tournament after a level-par finish today. World No. 4 Steve Stricker is on the same score, one-over, having hit a two-over-par 74 earlier today.
And Rickie Fowler also seems likely to miss the cut, despite a fine second round today which saw the Californian shoot six birdies and just one bogey; unfortunately, it would take something miraculous to make up for Fowler's previous round, when the 21-year-old shot a calamitous seven-over 79 thanks to double bogeys on the 16th and 17th.
Those bogeys came for Fowler during yesterday's most treacherous conditions - let's hope they don't prove a sign of what's to come for another hotly tipped 21-year-old, currently grappling with the Old Course at its most uncompromising.
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