Rory McIlroy signs off second day in Memphis with 66

The Northern Irishman finished the day seven under – with Lucas Glover’s 64 putting him top of the leaderboard on 10 under.

Glover managed to edge in front of Jordan Spieth at the head of the standings.

McIlroy posted birdies on the first, fourth, eighth, 15th and 16th holes.

His sole blemish with a bogey on the fifth.

McIlroy entered day two on three under, having split three bogeys with four birdies and an eagle from his opening round.

Yesterday, Glover was six under for his 18 holes and 10 under overall, one stroke ahead of Spieth and two in front of a chasing pack of five including England’s Tommy Fleetwood.

An eagle at the 16th, Glover’s seventh hole, lit a fire under his round and he followed with a run of three birdies in four holes on the front nine as he put together a blemish-free card at TPC Southwind in Memphis.

Spieth followed his eye-catching 63 on Thursday with a patchier 68.

He was two under on yesterday’s play, peaking with a magnificent bunker shot that nestled in the hole from 16 yards and got him in in two shots at the short fourth.

That was one of six birdies he managed, but his progress was offset by four bogeys – two in succession immediately following his brilliant effort from the sand.

Fleetwood hit his second 66 in a row to reach eight under, while the world numbers one and two – Scottie Scheffler and McIlroy – are one further back on seven under.

The pair both signed for 66, staying in the hunt for a title tilt over the weekend.

The 34-year-old McIlroy is aiming to win the overall FedEx Cup title for a fourth time, plus secure a return to top spot in the Official World Golf Ranking.

This Memphis meeting is the first of three play-off events, with the field reduced from 70 to 50 players for next week’s BMW Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club before the final 30 tackle East Lake to settle the winner.