Rory McIlroy fired a second round eight-under-par 64 to soar joint top of the Malaysian Open on Friday, defying the jet-lag and exhaustion that nearly got the better of US Masters winner Charl Schwartzel. Both the players flew halfway across the globe from Augusta, where Schwartzel won his Green Jacket and McIlroy blew a four-shot final-round lead, to land here without their clubs that cost them precious practice rounds.
The sleep-deprived golfers responded differently to the hot and humid conditions at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club. A jaded Schwartzel hauled himself just above the projected cut line and was on even-par after 31 holes when the second day's play, hit by a more than two-and-half-hours' delay due to lightning, was suspended.
In contrast, McIlroy hardly put a foot wrong, firing a bogey-free round to join overnight leader Alexander Noren (69) at 11-under before the disruption. Starting at the 10th hole, world number nine McIlroy blasted five birdies in an outward 31 and added three more to complete a bogey-free round.