Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry were not going to sit idly by in their defense of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans title after a first round under expectations. The defending champions came out on Friday determined to improve their position and they did just that.

The Irish duo started the second round, played in foursomes, at full speed with one eagle, five birdies and one bogey in the first 12 holes. All told, they combined to shoot 3-under and enter the weekend at 11-under par. That is six shots off the lead, but it could have been even better.

Over the last six holes, they unraveled a bit, adding three bogeys without carding a birdie.

McIlroy’s approach game was a big part of the problem as he missed at key moments. On the 13th, the Northern Irishman failed to find the green with the ball just 45 yards from the hole, leading to their second bogey of the day.

Something similar happened on the 17th. Lowry teed off to the right fairway 71 feet from the hole, but McIlroy again missed his approach, leaving the ball just short of the green. From there, they two-putted for bogey.

One hole later, McIlroy had the ball in the fairway 118 yards from the hole on his third shot, but he couldn’t find the green either. He and Lowry needed three more shots to finish the hole and the round.

In the end, McIlroy and Lowry’s card included an eagle, five birdies and four bogeys for a 3-under 69. It was enough to move them up 16 places on the leaderboard and finish the first 36 holes tied for 16th.

A day earlier, the Irishmen had an eagle, seven birdies and one bogey in the four-ball format (8-under), which left them tied for 32nd after the first 18 holes.

McIlroy and Lowry will tee off at 10:28 a.m. Eastern Time in the third round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, which will revert back to the four-ball format. They will share a group with the team of Cam Davis and Adam Svensson.

A year ago, McIlroy and Lowry won the event by defeating Chad Ramey and Martin Trainer in a one-hole playoff. Both teams finished tied at 25-under over 72 holes.

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