BMW PGA Championship 2017: Francesco Molinari in 3-Way Tie After Day 2

Francesco Molinari, Scott Jamieson and Thomas Pieters have formed a three-way tie at the top of the 2017 BMW PGA Championship leaderboard after finishing Day 2 of the competition at seven under par.

Friday saw Pieters head into the clubhouse as the initial leader on seven-under, but Jamieson and Molinari rained on his parade after they matched his score by both climbing to two-under for the day.

The trio sit one shot ahead of six-under Maximilian Kieffer, while world No. 5 Henrik Stenson lies alongside Lee Westwood, Branden Grace and Byeong Hun An in fifth place at five under par.

One famed figure who wasn't in attendance at Wentworth Club was 2014 champion Rory McIlroy, although the Northern Irishman was keeping his eye on the entertainment from afar:

Some of the higher-profile figures who failed to make the weekend's cut include English native Tommy Fleetwood, Germany's Martin Kaymer, world No. 34 Russell Knox and Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen.

The official European Tour Twitter account provided a look at the top contenders approaching the climax of Friday's second round:

Visit the official European Tour website for a look at the 2017 BMW PGA Championship leaderboard in full.

Recap

Belgium's Pieters came to Surrey this week having tied for fourth at the Masters last month, and it was clear his taste for the high life hadn't simmered in recent weeks following a gutsy 69 on Friday.

His day didn't get off to the brightest of starts with a bogey on the third, but his second round was spotless from there on. The competition's official Twitter account confirmed his leaderboard-topping display:

It didn't last long, though, as Jamieson came out on the positive end of a topsy-turvy day's work that saw him score just seven pars. However, three bogeys and a double bogey weren't sufficient to prevent an impressive seven birdies seeing him to two-under for the day.

Jamieson's Friday performance was in stark contract to his bogey-free Thursday display:

Molinari was a far more consistent character on the Wentworth turf, and he clinched a small part of BMW PGA history after he matched Jamieson's score not long after:

The Italian bogeyed two of his first five holes but mimicked Pieters by ensuring that was where his errors ended, proceeding to par 10 of his remaining 13, not to mention saving his round with back-to-back birdies on the 17th and 18th.

Just as Molinari came close to not recording an under-par score, Justin Rose came close to not making the cut at all, but the Wentworth crowd were pleased to see the two-time runner-up save his own blushes:

His eagle on the 18th moved Rose to two over par for the day and two over overall, which was just enough to keep him among the leaderboard's upper half and ensure he'll play this weekend's action.

The upper echelon of the leaderboard remains a tightly knit group as things stand, with the pressure on to see who blinks first in a competition that could still head in any direction.