Rory McIlroy ready to defend RBC Canadian Open: Shoots a bogey free 67 (-5) round, just 3 shots behind the lead

Rory McIlroy shot a bogey-free 5-under 67 on the second day of the 2023 RBC Canadian Open to aggregate at 6-under after two rounds. McIlroy sits at T12, three strokes behind the leader, Carl Yuan.

McIlroy, who is eyeing his third straight win at the RBC Canadian Open, had a mediocre start to the tournament as he posted a 71 on Day 1. With the help of five birdies on Friday, McIlroy jumped 25 spots after completing 36 holes at Oakdale Country Club.

After his Friday round, McIlroy said he was feeling good to be in this position ahead of the weekend.

McIlroy told the PGA Tour:

"Would have been nice to be one or two closer to the lead, but I thought today went well."

As per the former World No. 1 golfer, his putting game was better in Round 1, but he did everything else better on the second day.

"I felt like I putted pretty well yesterday," McIlroy told PGA Tour. "But iron play was better, wedges were definitely better, got it in play a little more off the tee. So yeah, it was a better, more solid round."

Rory McIlroy hasn't won a professional event since the Hero Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour in January. He missed the cut at the Players Championship and the Masters. However, with two back-to-back top 10s, it seems like he is gradually finding his rhythm again.

It was Carl Yuan who was the star of the second day at Oakdale, however. The Chinese rookie carded a 5-under 67 to take the solo lead halfway through the event. His round consisted of two bogeys and seven birdies, three of which came in the final four holes. Yuan aggregates at 9-under after 36 holes at Oakdale.

Yuan, who made just five cuts in his first season as a PGA Tour pro, said that his prior goal was to not take on much stress and just have fun this week.

"That’s my No. 1 goal,” Yuan told PGA Tour. "Not a result goal, just like being in the present, hitting shot by shot and, yeah, being out here trying to have the most fun. All of it."

Tyrrell Hatton fired five straight birdies on Friday to shoot a low 64 at Oakdale. This helped him jump 68 spots up to the T2. He is joined by his countryman Aaron Rai, C.T. Pan, and local star Corey Conners for second place at 8-under. Conners is looking to become the first Canadian in seven decades to win the Canadian Open.

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When will Rory McIlroy resume play at the RBC Canadian Open on Saturday?

Rory McIlroy hits his first shot on the 3rd hole during the second round of the RBC Canadian Open

The third round of the RBC Canadian Open will begin at 9 a.m. EDT on Saturday. Rory McIlroy is paired alongside Mark Hubbard for the third round of play at the Oakdale Country Club. The pair will tee off at 2:10 p.m. EDT at the Oakdale Country Club.