McIlroy and Hatton One Stroke Behind Leader Rozner in Dubai

At the halfway point of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship in Dubai, Rory McIlroy and Tyrrell Hatton are one shot behind leader Antoine Rozner. Rozner, from France, holds the lead at nine under par. McIlroy, representing Northern Ireland, and Hatton, from England, are tied for second at eight under par. The leaderboard after the second round stands as follows: -9 A Rozner (Fra); -8 R McIlroy (NI), T Hatton (Eng); -7 N Niemann (Chi); -6 S Lowry (Ire), K Nakajima (Jpn), R Hojgaard (Den), J Svensson (Swe); -5 P Waring (Eng), T Fleetwood (Eng), M Wallace (Eng). Selected others include: -4 R MacIntyre (Sco); -3 A Fitzpatrick (Eng), T McKibbin (NI). Frenchman Rozner recorded a bogey-free round of 65, seven strokes under par, elevating his total score to nine under par. Meanwhile, Northern Ireland’s McIlroy and England’s Hatton each posted a score of 69 in their second round, following their initial rounds of 67. McIlroy’s strong start to the tournament makes him almost certain to claim a third consecutive Race to Dubai title, which would be his sixth overall. His only competitor for the trophy, South African Thriston Lawrence, is currently in 34th place at level par. For Lawrence to secure the overall title, he would need to win the tournament and McIlroy would have to finish outside the top 11. The 35-year-old McIlroy demonstrated excellent form early on Friday, achieving four birdies within his first seven holes, but then bogeyed two of his subsequent three holes. “I was a little bit disappointed I couldn’t kick-on after such a great start,” McIlroy informed BBC Sport. He further explained, “I just started to miss a few fairways around the turn – not by much either – but the rough is so thick that you lose all control of your golf ball if you hit it in there.” McIlroy added that his sole focus is on securing a third title at Jumeirah Golf Estates, rather than the prospect of winning the Race to Dubai. He stated, “At this point I’m just trying to win the golf tournament. If I win the golf tournament, then everything else that happens alongside that is nice.” Conversely, Hatton expressed that he was “frustrated” with his play, as he could not match the form of his playing partner, McIlroy. However, he acknowledged that his position on the leaderboard is positive. The 33-year-old told BBC Sport, “Scoring has not gone too low.” He elaborated, “In previous years, scoring would be a little bit better than what it is this year, so that’s probably helped me.” Joaquin Niemann is positioned in fourth place, two strokes behind the leaders. Ireland’s Shane Lowry is among three other players who are currently at six under par. Paul Waring, who needs a strong finish this weekend to secure one of 10 PGA Tour cards, is four shots adrift of Rozner, alongside fellow Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Wallace.