Omega Dubai Desert Classic 2016: Friday Leaderboard Scores and Highlights

With the first two rounds of the 2016 Omega Dubai Desert Classic officially in the books, Spain's Rafael Cabrera-Bello is pacing the field with a score of 10-under par.

Ernie Els, Danny Willett and Trevor Fisher Jnr. also performed well Friday at Emirates Golf Club in Dubai, and they currently trail Cabrera-Bello by one stroke, which promises to make for a highly entertaining weekend.

Here is a look at the current leaderboard with two rounds left to play, courtesy of EuropeanTour.com:

Position	Golfer	To Par	Round 1	Round 2
1	Rafael Cabrera-Bello	-10	67	67
T2	Ernie Els	-9	68	67
T2	Danny Willett	-9	70	65
T2	Trevor Fisher Jnr.	-9	67	68
T5	Chris Wood	-8	68	68
T5	Joost Luiten	-8	69	67
T5	Andy Sullivan	-8	70	66
T5	Thorbjorn Olesen	-8	72	64
T9	Alvaro Quiros	-7	68	69
T9	Brett Rumford	-7	67	70
T9	Henrik Stenson	-7	69	68

After shooting a five-under 67 Thursday, Cabrera-Bello followed that up with an identical second round. He found himself near the top of the leaderboard all day long, but a late move enabled him to clear the rest of the field.

The 2012 Omega Dubai Desert Classic champion was tied for the lead entering the 18th hole, but he sunk this birdie putt to take sole possession of the lead, according to the European Tour's official Twitter account:

Cabrera-Bello enjoyed a strong day, but he was far from the top player on the course. Willett came through with a seven-under 65 to move into a tie for second place, while Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen fired an eight-under 64 on the heels of a disappointing even-par first round.

Els also carried his fine form into the second round, as he shot a five-under 67 and finds himself just a single stroke off the pace.

The Big Easy revealed on Twitter that he was pleased with the way he performed Friday:

Per the European Tour, strong play has been the norm for Els at the Omega Desert Dubai Classic over the years, as he almost never has a bad round:

The 46-year-old South African star is a surefire Hall of Famer with four career major championships to his credit, but he entered the tournament in a slump due largely to some putting woes.

According to PA Sport (h/t ESPN.com), Els admitted after the first round that poor putting was wreaking havoc on his game.

"I went through a very tough spell, I think everybody saw that," Els said. "I'm kind of starting to rekindle my love for putting again and the rest of the game has always been there, so I feel like I can still do something."

Els seems to be back on track after making some adjustments, and this perfect putt is proof of that:

Fisher is also in the mix at nine-under overall, and he played an extremely clean second round with four birdies and no bogeys.

He seemed almost certain to drop a stroke on the eighth hole, which was his second-to-last hole of the day, but that didn't happen thanks to a remarkable sand save that nestled close to the pin from long range:

Two of the world's top-six golfers are in the field as well in the form of No. 2 Rory McIlroy and No. 6 Henrik Stenson.

Stenson registered a solid four-under 68, which puts the 2007 Omega Dubai Desert Classic winner in an advantageous position entering the weekend, as he is just three shots off the pace.

The same can't be said for McIlroy, who entered the tournament looking to repeat as champion. The Northern Irishman had a rough day that resulted in an even-par 72.

He is six strokes back at four-under overall, but it could have been much worse if not for a birdie binge on his final three holes of the day, as seen in this look at his scorecard, courtesy of Sky Sports Golf:

This tournament always seems to yield some impressive scores, and with the leader at 10-under just midway through the event, that trend seems likely to continue.

With so many talented golfers within just a few strokes of the lead, the landscape of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic promises to change significantly over the next two days.

Cabrera-Bello is the man to beat due to his extremely clean, consistent play thus far, but with big names like Els and Stenson as well as hard chargers like Willett and Olesen on his heels, two more excellent rounds are a must.  

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