Thomas equals Sawgrass record as McIlroy two off lead

The second-round leaderboard of the Players Championship

-11 MW Lee (Aus), A Bhatia (US), -10 JJ Spaun (US), -9 R McIlroy (NI), C Morikawa (US), A Smalley (US)

Selected others: -8 W Zalatoris (US), -7 T Fleetwood (Eng), -6 S Straka (Aut), -5 S Scheffler (US), S Jaeger (Ger), R MacIntyre (Sco), -4 J Thomas (US), -2 A Rai (Eng), -1 X Schauffele (US), S Lowry (Ire), E J Rose (Eng), + 2 L Aberg (Swe), + 4 V Hovland (Nor)

Rory McIlroy is only two shots off the lead at the halfway point, while Justin Thomas set a stunning 10-under-par 62 at The Players Championship in Florida.

Thomas, who had a six-over 78 in his opening round and was seriously in danger of missing the cut, did it in a remarkable turnaround.

The 31-year-old American broke Tom Hoge’s course record in 2023 by posting 11 birdies in a single round at the PGA Tour’s flagship event.

Thomas moved 104 places up in the leaderboard as a result of his 16-stroke improvement, which was also the biggest from the first to the second round in the history of the competition.

The two-time US PGA champion is now seven shots clear of joint leaders Min Woo Lee and Akshay Bhatia despite finding the water on his second shot at the 18th, which ended in a disappointing bogey.

“Crazy is an understatement,” he said. It is extraordinary. Thomas told Sky Sports, “I’m just really proud of myself.”

The attitude and mentality must be present, not the score, but it is just [as good] to come out. I had to do something crazy just to make the cut because of who I was.

With live commentary and coverage of Saturday’s third round and Sunday’s finale on the BBC Sport website and BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, Thomas’ incredible performance opens up an intriguing weekend.

On par with JJ Spaun, both of Australia’s Lee, 26, and American Bhatia, 23, who both signed for rounds of 66, sits one shot further than the pair.

McIlroy, a Northern Irishman, shot a four-under-par 68 to stay in contention after nine under two shots.

At TPC Sawgrass, the world number two had the second-lowest 36-hole score, which he only improved when he won in 2019 and was victorious.

Collin Morikawa’s 65 also placed him on the same course as his lowest-ranked fellow golfer, and Tommy Fleetwood, who hasn’t yet won on the PGA Tour, is also well-placed on seven under after carding a 66.

Scottie Scheffler, the reigning world no. 1, is two shots back after a 70, while Xander Schauffele, who played alongside McIlroy and Scheffler in the marquee group, birdied his final hole of the day to finish one under.

The weekend’s weather was ideal for scoring on Friday, but the weekend forecast is less favorable.

Saturday and Sunday are expected to experience gusts of up to 30 mph, but McIlroy believes he is well-equipped to handle the challenge in his quest for a second Players title.

He declared, “I’m anticipating it.” “I believe trying to flight your ball and keep it under the tree line is going to be really important.” I believe that once it crosses the tree line, it can start to really hit this.

It does “swirl a little bit,” but I believe it will stay that way when the wind is strong. Although the wind is strong enough, I’m up for the challenge.