Rumford pins back McIlroy

2008-09-05 20:04

Crans-Sur-Sierre - Defending champion Brett Rumford of Australia carded a second successive 67 to join first round leader Rory McIlroy at the top of the European Masters leaderboard on Friday.

Rumford reached eight under par while Northern Ireland teenager McIlroy, who hit a 63 on Thursday to open up a three-shot overnight lead, managed a level par 71 on Friday.

It left both players with a share of the second round lead, but Alejandro Canizares, Jean-Francois Lucquin and Juan Abbate are just a shot back at seven under.

Rumford birdied three of his first five holes, grabbed two more early on the front nine, but bogeyed the 506 yard par four fourth like McIlroy and parred his way in from there.

"Conditions are getting tough," said Rumford of the high-altitude Alpine venue.

Three bogeys

"This is how it played at the Pro-Am and the greens dried out and the course changed completely from Wednesday to Thursday with all the rain.

"As we all know it only takes one day of good weather to get these greens reacting so differently. The weekend will be completely different."

The 19-year-old McIlroy had stretched his lead to four with an opening birdie, but although he chipped in on the eighth and added a further birdie at the long 14th, there were also three bogeys on his card.

Only South African Dale Hayes and Spanish star Seve Ballesteros have tasted success on the circuit at a younger age than McIlroy.

Should he do it on Sunday, last year's top amateur at the British Open would be only five days older than Ballesteros was when he captured the 1976 Dutch Open.

- AFP