McIlroy slips off the pace after tougher second round at BMW Championship

Rory McIlroy fell off the pace at the BMW Championship in St Louis after a tougher second round left him trailing the new leader by five shots.

The Masters champion had shared the overnight lead following an opening round of six under par, but could only manage a one-under 69 on Friday. That result dropped him behind Wyndham Clark, who produced a flawless round to reach 12 under par and take the outright lead by one stroke over Gary Woodland.

The 32-year-old Clark is currently the only player in the field yet to record a bogey through the first two rounds of the tournament.

Speaking to the Golf Channel afterwards, McIlroy said conditions had felt broadly similar to the opening day, though the wind was blowing from a different direction. He noted the greens were soft and the ball was running out a bit more on the fairways, meaning low scores were still achievable for the rest of the field.

McIlroy admitted he had not struck the ball as well as he had a day earlier and said he expected to spend the afternoon on the driving range as a result. Even so, he said he was pleased with how he had managed to stay in contention, pointing to a string of solid par putts on the back nine.

His only blemish came from a mistake on the par-five eighth hole, but several good par saves on the way in helped him remain within touching distance of the leaders.

Further down the leaderboard, Justin Rose sits at four under par, while a group of English and Scottish players — including Robert MacIntyre, Matt Fitzpatrick, Alex Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood and Aaron Rai — are positioned further back in the standings.