Rory McIlroy's season of almosts could turn a new page this weekend at the 2024 BMW PGA Championship. Following up a 5-under 67 in Round 1 with a 68 on Friday, the world No. 3 sits in a share of fourth place at 9 under and four off the pace of 36-hole leader Matthew Baldwin.
"It's been good. I think it's been solid," McIlroy said. "I think 9 under is probably a fair reflection of how I've played over the first couple days. You know, when I've missed some greens, my short game has been pretty good and I got up-and-down. A couple key saves on 14 and 17 coming in, and then birdies at 16 and 18 were nice, as well.
"So yeah, overall, pretty pleased with where I'm at on the leaderboard. There's a couple of scrappy things in there that I'm trying to sort of iron out of the game, but overall, pretty happy with where I'm at."
McIlroy's round began in ho-hum fashion as he took advantage of the par-5 4th before sautéing a wedge into the par-4 6th to tap-in distance. A three-putt bogey came a couple holes later and made it so McIlroy turned in 1 under.
Another circle arrived on the first of three par 5s on the back side at Wentworth and positioned McIlroy on the first page of the leaderboard. A conversion from 11 feet on the par-4 16th inched his name closer to the top and set the stage for a strong finish that included a par save on the par-5 17th and a two-putt birdie on the last.
One week removed from a disappointing finish in Northern Ireland at the Irish Open, McIlroy finds himself in contention to win yet again. Instead of shying away from the opportunity to enter the winner's circle, the 35-year-old is set on relishing the chance to claim the DP World Tour's flagship event for the first time in 10 years.
"I think it's really important, but also, it's nice," McIlroy said. "I wouldn't have liked the week off to just wallow in self-pity and whatever else I would have been doing if I had not played. To come back out and get straight back on the golf course and play a couple of solid rounds and give myself another chance at a really big tournament that means a lot to me, I thought it was important to do that and thankfully I have."
