The Players: Ryder Cup pair Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood three clear at Sawgrass
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood will go into the weekend of The Players Championship tied for the lead with Ian Poulter in the chasing pack at TPC Sawgrass.
After four birdies in five holes around the turn, McIlroy made a superb eagle at 16 and holed a lengthy putt for a bonus birdie on the 17th green before narrowly missing out on the outright lead at the last following a remarkable second from the pine straw.
Sandy Lyle remains the only British champion in the PGA Tour's flagship event, but McIlroy and Fleetwood will have high hopes of emulating the Scot's 1987 success after the pair made only three bogeys between them over the first 36 holes.
Fleetwood birdied the first and third either side of a thrilling hole-out from a greenside bunker for eagle at the second, and he bounced back from his first blemish of the week at the ninth with two further birdies over the next three holes.
The 28-year-old endured a scrappy spell down the stretch and dropped another shot at 15, but he safely negotiated the 17th and finished on a high with a 10-foot putt for birdie at the last.
While he went to the media centre for his press conference, with many confident he would have the outright lead at the end of the day, McIlroy suddenly propelled himself into a tie at the top after another round of consistent driving, solid iron play and precise putting.
A bogey at the first was quickly atoned for as he got the shot back at the next, but he remained on five under until reigniting his challenge with birdies at eight, nine and 10, although he missed out on four in a row after a misread from eight feet at the 11th.
But he picked up a bonus birdie from 25 feet at 12, and a towering 224-yard second to inside 10 feet at the long 16th was converted for eagle, and McIlroy then found himself tied at the top thanks to another assured putt on the 17th green.
