Rory McIlroy at WGC-Cadillac Championship 2016: Friday Score and Reaction
One of golf's best, Rory McIlroy, shot a seven-under during the second round of the 2016 WGC-Cadillac Championship for an overall score of eight under. At the time of his finish, he was in second place behind Adam Scott.
| Par | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 |
| Score | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Par | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Score | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 3 |
McIlroy entered the second round outside the top 10, so he had some chasing to do. Soft conditions on an expansive course at Trump National Doral allowed him to be more aggressive and try to gain some ground despite a strong breeze and plenty of trouble afoot in over 100 bunkers.
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McIlroy started his day off on the right foot with a birdie on No. 1. After a 290-yard drive and a 272-yard second shot, he hit a 90-yard approach within three feet of the hole, which created an easy birdie.
His approach on No. 2 wasn't as successful. On the par-four 448-yard hole, McIlroy's approach missed the green and hit rough almost 40 yards away from the pin. It set up his first and only bogey of the day.
McIlroy's play ignited soon after, and he recorded four straight birdies.
He got back down to the red on No. 5 thanks to a 321-yard drive that set up his second birdie.
His third of the day, on No. 6, was capped off by a 13-foot uphill putt that broke to the right ever so slightly. Not the easiest way to make birdie.
The putt gave him an opportunity to show off his new putting style with his left hand placed beneath his right on the club, similar to Jordan Spieth's.
He spoke with ESPN's Jason Sobel about the switch:
Even Spieth chimed in on McIlroy's putting change, via Sobel:
On the par-four No. 7, McIlroy's second shot went 159 yards and landed less than five feet from the hole after another big 312-yard drive. It set up an easy putt for birdie.
The monster drives continued on his next hole, a par-five 549-yard layout, with a 328-yard opening shot. He overcame a quick detour through the right front bunker and was on the green by his third shot to set up his fourth straight birdie.
McIlroy moved into the top five with a birdie on the huge par-five 601-yard No. 12. In order to do so, he had to get out of the rough on his third shot, a little more than 60 yards form the hole, as the European Tour showed:
On No. 15, he moved into a tie for first at six under overall with a 23-foot birdie conversion right near the fringe, per the PGA Tour:
He finished his day strong with the putter, sinking a 19-foot putt on No. 18 for birdie to move him to seven under on the day and eight under overall.
His stay in first was only temporary after Scott recorded two straight birdies, but McIlroy is sitting in fantastic position after the second round at the WGC.
On such a difficult course, he was able to limit his mistakes and work out of some tough situations to stay relatively clean. If he's able to fashion a couple of other outings like the one he had Friday, then he'll be taking home the title.
Stats courtesy of WorldGolfChampionships.com
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