Golf:"Another solid day on the links," was how Rory McIlroy described the 64 that propelled him to the top of the leaderboard after his second round of the Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur, but it was a bit more special than that.
Starting from the 10th the Ulsterman carded eight birdies and no bogeys to move into a share of the lead with Alexander Noren, the Swede who shot the same score yesterday.
It is, according to McIlroy’s Tweet, “great to get back into contention again so soon”.
The Northern Irishman was brilliant for three rounds of the US Masters at Augusta last week before falling away in spectacular fashion as he relinquished a four-shot lead with a first major title in sight.
There had been fears his Masters collapse would have a psychological effect on him in the longer term but he insisted last Sunday he would not have a Masters hangover and has gone some way to proving it at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.
He rattled off three birdies in his first four holes, before following up with a cool 12-foot putt at the 16th and another three at the par-four 17th. Coming home McIlroy added three more birdies.
Asked whether his round had proved to him he was over his Masters misery, McIlroy told www.europeantour.com: "It would show more to everyone else other than myself that last week didn't set me back.
"I've started this week off great but I need to keep going and making birdies and shooting low scores if I want to win. Eleven under after two days here is a great effort considering I've travelled so far and not seeing the course. I'm happy with how I played."
Englishman Simon Dyson would also have been happy with his round, matching McIlroy's second-round score to move into third at 10 under.
Italian Matteo Manassero, who turns 18 next week, was second at the end of the first round at six-under-par but could not improve that total through nine holes of his second round, before thunderstorms forced the later starters from the course.
Scotland's Stephen Gallacher shot a two-under-par 70 to add to his first-day 67, which was good enough for a share of fourth place alongside Australian Brett Rumford at seven under.
New Masters champion Charl Schwartzel was in danger of missing the cut in Malaysia. He was one over par for the tournament through nine holes of his second round, while fellow South African Louis Oosthuizen - the 2010 Open champion - was just one under par at the halfway point of his round.
McIlroy's fellow Ulstermen Gareth Maybin and Michael Hoey are in danger of missing the cut, with the latter just on the wrong side of the line on one over after a two-under-par 70 and the former on level par after a 71.
