Rory McIlroy Closes in on World Number 1 Spot, Tiger Left Behind

Rory McIlroy Closes in on World Number 1 Spot, Tiger Left Behind

Rory McIlroy grabbed the chance of gaining the number one spot in the world rankings, having a two stroke lead ahead of Sunday’s final round of the Honda Classic.

The 22-year-old from Holywood shot a four-under par 66 even in windy conditions on Saturday.

“It was another very solid day out there,” he said. “I’m very happy, obviously, with the position I’m in and I just need to try and keep doing the same things tomorrow.”

Northern Irishman McIlroy, who can steal the top spot from Englishman Luke Donald only with a victory, finished with a birdie on the 18th hole, and draining a 12-foot putt from the opposite fringe.

Mcllroy stands at 11-under par for the tournament and has a great chance of getting to the number 1 spot for the first time.

“I have to really stay in the present, stay in the moment and not think about everything else that could happen, whether it be going to number one or winning my first tournament (here),” he said. “I’ve just got to go out there and try to put a good number on the board.”

Americans Tom Gillis and Harris English were two strokes behind McIlroy while Englishman Justin Rose and Americans Keegan Bradley, the PGA Championship winner, and Brian Harman, who smashed the course record on Friday, were a further two strokes back.

Tiger Woods, struggling to keep up with the fast pace, could only manage a one-under 69, leaving him nine shots off McIlroy.

Posted by Andre Monohan on Monday March 05 2012, 1:41 PM EDT. Ref: Google. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0