Saturday 20 January 2018 14:13, UK
Rory McIlroy continued his bogey-free return to competitive golf as Thomas Pieters cruised into the halfway lead on another day of high-quality golf at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
The marquee group of McIlroy, world No 1 Dustin Johnson and defending champion Tommy Fleetwood delighted the spectators with a superb display of ball-striking, the trio getting round in a combined 18 under par on the day with just one dropped shot between them.
Johnson's 64 matched the low score of the second round as he bounced back from his disappointing opening 72 to get within four of the lead, while McIlroy prompted the loudest cheer of day two when he capped a classy 66 with a 25-foot putt for eagle on the final green.
Fleetwood is the best placed of the three after celebrating his 27th birthday with a birdie-birdie finish which earned him a 68 and leaves him just two strokes behind Pieters heading into the weekend.
Pieters, who eagled the last in his first-round 67, started on the 10th and coasted to the turn in 33 before beginning the front nine with back-to-back birdies, and he finished strongly for the second day running as birdies at eight and nine - where he holed out from a greenside bunker - hoisted him into the outright lead on 12 under.
That score proved enough for the big-hitting Belgian to hold onto the clubhouse lead for the remainder of the day, with Jorge Campillo emerging as his closest challenger after the Spaniard birdied the final two holes to card a flawless 64.
Ross Fisher atoned for his first blemish of the week at the sixth - his 15th - with a birdie-birdie finish to match his opening 67 and reach 10 under alongside EurAsia Cup team-mate Alexander Levy (65), and they were joined by Fleetwood when the holder became yet another player to birdie his final two holes.
The Race to Dubai champion birdied the two par-fives in a solid outward 34 and picked up another shot at the short 12th, although he then dropped his first stroke of the tournament at the 16th.
But Fleetwood produced a positive response to close on 10 under, with McIlroy one further behind after keeping a bogey off his card for the second day running.
McIlroy's tee-to-green game again looked in fine order despite his three-and-a-half month layoff, although he could not take advantage of the par-fives on the front nine, but he made an early birdie at the fourth and suddenly vaulted up the leaderboard with three in four holes around the turn.
He missed further chances over the next five holes, but McIlroy enjoyed a grandstand finale when he drilled a high-fade onto the front of the 18th green and nailed the putt to jump to nine under.
English duo Paul Casey and Andy Sullivan both carded 65s to sit alongside McIlroy, Sam Brazel and Bernd Wiesberger in a share of sixth, with Johnson nicely-placed for a weekend charge as he birdied three of the last four holes to complete his sublime 64.
Fan-favourite Andrew "Beef" Johnston continued his encouraging form with an error-free 68 that got him to eight under along with fellow Englishman Chris Paisley, last week's surprise winner of the BMW SA Open.
Abu Dhabi specialist Martin Kaymer remained in contention on seven under with Ryder Cup team-mates Henrik Stenson and Matt Fitzpatrick one further back, while Justin Rose held his nerve to hole a four-foot birdie putt at the last and make the cut with nothing to spare on two under par.
