Five hundred and thirty-two yards. What mode of transport are you taking for that?

For Rory McIlroy it is a drive and, ridiculously, a wedge.

He has a shot at an eagle. A 15-foot putt before him.

Tom English
BBC Scotland's chief sports writer

I don't think there was any pressure on Rory McIlroy this morning. I think there's pressure on him now.

He's worked himself back in contention. The card in his pocket has become relevant again. Let's see what he's got. He didn't handle it yesterday.

Alex Bysouth
BBC Sport at Royal Portrush

Wow. Rory McIlroy absolutely smoked that drive at 12. Wind assisted, it looked a good 400 yards from down by the tee... the anticipation among the straggling spectators is rising again. They can sense a Rory revival.

It was such a big drive that the television camera that tracked it had to pan to part of the scaffolding tower it was sat on to show where the ball had ended up.

Dylan Frittelli is so close to rescuing par on the final hole.

But the South African's way-downtown putt pauses on the edge of the hole and decide to stay upstairs.

Another shot dropped after a double bogey on 17.

He is back among the hoi-polloi, eighth on five under

This was an absolute beauty from American Kevin Kisner earlier.

"Rory McIlroy's going to be there."

"It's in the stars."

"Of course he's going to do it, he's going for a 61 again today."

Plenty of confident McIlroy fans talking to the BBC Radio 5 Live crew out on the course.

Iain Carter
BBC Sport golf correspondent at Royal Portrush

The projected cut is +1 over, but there are only 71 players at +1 or better so you only need a player or two to drop, then that projected cut goes to +2.

A second successive birdie for Beef Johnston on the 17th means he's flirting with the cut.

Alex Bysouth
BBC Sport at Royal Portrush

It was interesting watching this trio walk up the fairway on the 11th. Rory McIlroy was in the middle of Paul Casey and Gary Woodland leading a really in-depth and animated conversation. I couldn’t quite catch what he was saying, but it ended with Woodland wheeling away laughing to himself. Maybe Rory was cracking the gags. You can do that when you’re on a birdie run...

"Hello? Is that reception? You know those rooms I cancelled for the weekend? Can you just hold them for an hour or so?"

Rory McIlroy sinks a second successive birdie to edge down to four over. He is four under for his round today. Only three other men have done better than that so far on Friday.

Dylan Frittelli takes his medicine on 17.

A double bogey sends him into reverse.

JB Holmes and Shane Lowry, both safely back in the bar, lead on eight under.

Alex Bysouth
BBC Sport at Royal Portrush

The cauldron-shaped banks around the 10th green seem to make the noise bubble up and over on to the rest of the course. It was boiling hot and complemented by more than a sprinkling of yips and hollers as Rory passed through just then!

Dylan Frittelli is wilder than Mario Balotelli at Mardi Gras off the 17th tee.

His initial first shot is lost in the tangled rough. His provisional tee shot is not too clever either.

He plays his fourth from the weeds. But he still has a long-range putt just to take bogey.

He is heading backwards on the scorecards.

Surely not? Surely not?

Maybe...just maybe.

Rory McIlroy has birdied 10 and is now five over par. The projected cut is one over.

If he gets a move on, he could just catch the bus to the weekend's action.

Image source, Getty Images

What do you need to know about Dylan Frittelli then?

First of all the specs. Most golfers go with contact lenses. Not the 29-year-old who rocks some big old prescription goggles.

He was also a team-mate of Jordan Spieth's at University of Texas. Probably pretty useful those two...

Shane Lowry's par putt skirts the edge of the hole but refuses to drop.

All done, as he finishes on a bit of a bum note.

He leads along with JB Holmes, who is back in the clubhouse, and Dylan Frittelli, who has two to play.

Shane Lowry's third at 18 is locked onto the flag like a missle. Unfortunately it is travelling at the pace of an exocet as well.

It skips 10 feet by.

This will be a tricky par putt for sole ownership of the lead...

Conor McNamara
BBC Radio 5 live commentator at Royal Portrush

What a welcome to the 18th! Shane Lowry being given a hero's welcome. He's played some fantastic golf and has made very few errors.

Is Shane Lowry getting a little jerky as he comes down the last?

A stray approach hops across a bunks and finds turf.

Still, nothing is going to dampen his reception from the grandstands. Hearty cheers from the crowd.

Rory McIlroy is not going to flame out of this tournament in a wreck of a round.

But neither is he going to make a charge to ram-raid a place in the weekend's action.

He misses another birdie chance from long range at nine and, with the cut sitting at one over, needs an improbable hot streak to avoid an unexpectedly leisurely weekend.