McIlroy and Day both missed the cut at the U.S. Open last week, so McIlroy was clearly relieved not to suffer the same fate as he tries to get some competitive rounds under his belt after recovering from an early-season rib injury.
On the fairway at the par-four 18th, he had barely 100 yards to the hole, a wedge in his hand and birdie in his mind at TPC River Highlands.
But his back foot slipped substantially during his downswing, causing him to hit the ball fat, advancing it barely halfway to the hole and leaving it in rough.
The dropped shot left McIlroy sweating whether he would make the cut with his even-par 140 halfway total, but he ended up advancing to the weekend by the skin of his teeth, eight strokes behind halfway leader Jordan Spieth.
“My right foot completely just came out from under me,” he told reporters after signing for a 73.
“There was a tiny bit of drizzle, maybe a little bit of surface water. It was weird. As soon as I started down (on the downswing) I just felt it and I couldn’t stop. Not a very nice shot to finish with.
“I hope I get two more rounds, more than anything to learn where my game’s at going into the next two weeks.”
Australian Day, meanwhile, shot a 69 but signed for a 70 after marking a par on his card at the third hole, where he actually made birdie.
Under the rules, a player is not disqualified for signing for a higher score than he shoots.
Day bogeyed the last and signed for a two-over 142 total, two strokes shy of making the cut.
(Reporting by Andrew Both in Cary, North Carolina, editing by Ed Osmond)
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