Rory McIlroy impressed in the second round of the Genesis Scottish Open, while Chris Gotterup equalled the course record on Friday.
Playing a week before The Open, McIlroy carded six birdies and one bogey on his way to a second-round 65 to leave him seven under par moving into the weekend.
But he was outshone by American Gotterup, who shot a superb 61 to equal the course record at the Renaissance Club in North Berwick.
“I got off to a bit of a flier,” McIlroy said. “The conditions were so benign this morning, hardly any wind and then the wind started to pick up a little bit on the back nine but still very, very manageable.
“I started to struggle a little bit, hit a couple of wayward drives but did well to scramble for pars. Disappointed to drop one coming in there but overall it’s a really good score and puts me right in the thick of things going into the weekend.
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Rory McIlroy says his second round, which included six birdies and finishing the day five-under, has put him into the ‘thick of things’ at the Scottish Open.
“Being aggressive off the tee on links golf courses and taking the bunkers out of play, if the rough isn’t too bad, has always been a pretty good strategy for me.
“I’m sticking with that for the week. Sometimes it gets you in trouble but most of the time it works out pretty well.”
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