TIGER WOODS is on course for a remarkable 17th individual World Golf Championship title in 34 attempts after claiming a share of the halfway lead at the HSBC Champions in Shanghai.
Woods carded a second consecutive five-under-par 67 to join overnight leader Nick Watney (70) on 10 under par, with world number two Phil Mickelson returning a 66 to lie a shot behind alongside compatriot Ryan Moore and Spain’s Alvaro Quiros.
Irish Open champion Shane Lowry slipped back after his opening 66 with a two-over-par 74. That included playing the back nine (his front) in 39 strokes.
But he finished strongly with birdies at the seventh and eighth holes to share 14th place on four under par.
In contrast, Rory McIlroy recovered from an opening 73 to record a fine four-under 68, which included only one dropped shot, at the first, which he had double-bogeyed on Thursday.
That left him in a share of 23rd on three under.
Pádraig Harrington had a better day with the putter to sign for a 69 which left him on one under par.
Woods, after being disappointed with his first round, made his move on the back nine of his second.
He birdied the 11th and 13th, chipped in for another on the 16th and rounded off an inward nine of 32 with a birdie on the long 18th.
“I got off to a good start and birdied the very first hole but, after that, I didn’t really make any putts,” Woods said.
“I certainly had some looks at them and didn’t really capitalise on anything, but made a putt at nine and from then on I hit a lot of good putts and played the last 10 holes in five under.
“It was a little bit frustrating not holing the putts, but the guys weren’t really running off and hiding and I knew that if I could play the back nine in three under that would be a pretty good number and I was able to do one better than that.”
Quiros was the only European player inside the top-10 after adding a 66 to his opening 69.
“I’m hitting the ball okay, nothing great but nothing bad either,” said Quiros. “I’ve been very lucky because the shots I missed were very playable and I made a good recovery.
“I didn’t see my name on the leaderboard for a long time, it was all Americans. It was strange, but it’s very exciting for me.
“All of the players on the leaderboard are great players, we will have to see what happens.”
Since posting a thrilling win in Qatar at the start of the year which pushed the 26-year-old into the world’s top-30, Quiros has struggled to recapture that form, with only a second place at May’s European Open to show for his efforts.
“I don’t think the Americans are too strong, it’s just a question of luck or whatever you want to call it,” added Quiros.
“Most of the time there are a lot of Europeans at the top of the leaderboard but I don’t really now why I am the only European. I think we are playing well, most of the Europeans are in a very good position.”
Smyth up with the leaders
DES SMYTH is just two shots behind leader Angel Franco after yesterday’s opening round of the end-of-season Castellon Senior Tour Championship yesterday.
Smyth shot a six-under-par 66 to lie in joint third behind the Paraguayan, who carded the lowest round of his Senior Tour career.
Cork’s Denis O’Sullivan is tied for seventh after a solid 68, while Jimmy Heggarty is a shot further back.
The 51-year-old Franco has finished runner-up five times in his Senior Tour career, but is determined to go one better at Club de Campo del Mediterráneo.
Of the eight players still holding a realistic chance of winning the Senior Tour Order of Merit, Sam Torrance made the best start, with a birdie on the last hole to cap a five-under-par 67. Torrance is defending the title and needs to finish in at least the top four to have any chance of succeeding fellow former Ryder Cup captain Ian Woosnam as winner of the John Jacobs Trophy.
