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20th July 2018
10:14pm BST

"I'm committed to making sure, even if I don't play my best golf and don't shoot the scores I want, I'm going to go down swinging and I'm going to go down giving it my best. I just need to get back in that mindset."It took some of that scrapping from the 29-year-old to avoid a stinker of a start. Heading out early, and dealing with cross-winds, the world number eight found himself in as rotten position at the Par 4 second hole. He missed the green with his approach but his recovery game was dialled in and he saved par in style. https://twitter.com/EuropeanTour/status/1020208973155373056 It was all pars and a solitary birdie on the front nine but the journey home was riveting. A birdie at 10 was handed back at 12 before further shots picked up at 13 and 14 saw him get to -5. A bogey five on 15 brought him back to reality and he went close with a couple of putts but could not get back to -5. His two-round total of 138 was looking good until, for an hour at least, the winds died down at Carnoustie at Kisner sprinted out to -8. A leader after the first round, Kisner handed a couple of shots back to finish alongside Johnson on -6. Round of the day was England's Tommy Fleetwood as his six-under score of 65 moved him to within one of the lead. McIlroy will tee off on Saturday afternoon, not too long before the leaders set off, and he made a confident claim heading into the weekend:
"I don't want to say [it has been] easy, but it has felt comfortable. "If I can get on a run or off to a fast start on one of the next two days, I don't see a ridiculously low score out there but I do see something like what Tommy shot out there today - a 66 or a 65. I think I'm capable of that, yeah."A 65, if possible, would get McIlroy to -10 going into the final round. That is the dream scenario but if he can stay close to the top and give himself a chance on Sunday, he will ask for no more. Consider this, too, as the Northern Irishman heads into what will be a pivotal 'Moving Day': https://twitter.com/JustinRayGC/status/1020272954469502976 Good omens after an equally good start.
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