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Rory McIlroy saw enough in his game to suggest that good times are on the horizon despite missing the cut at the US Open for a second year in a row.

The four-time major winner finished four shots outside the cut line on five-over-par but battled to a one-under-par 71 in his second round thanks to four birdies in his final six holes.

Unfortunately though, that momentum came just too late and despite not making it to the weekend, McIlroy was keen to see the positives in what is only his fifth event of 2017.

“I showed up for the last six holes, anyway,” he said after his round. “I definitely hit it better off the tee. I think I hit 10 or 11 fairways other than the four or five I did yesterday. I gave myself a lot more looks.

“But I think at the end of the day, it’s competitive rounds and get the card in my hand. I’ve been very light on competitive rounds this year, and it’s just a matter of getting into a good round of golf now.

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Mc Ilroy Day

“I saw some positives there on the back nine and hopefully I can take them to the Travelers [Championship] next week. As I said, I’m just excited to get on a run of golf.”

McIlroy wasn’t the only big-name casualty on the leaderboard. World No.1 Dustin Johnson (+2*) and fellow top ten men Henrik Stenson (+3), Adam Scott (+3), Alex Noren (+4*), Jon Rahm (+4*) all looked doubtful to make it to the weekend at the time of writing, while Jason Day shot ten-over-par with only a handful of players shooting a worse 36-hole score than him.

“It’s pretty frustrating,” said the Aussie. “I got here Friday, put the work in – not a lot – but I tried to pace myself.

“I did the work, looked at the golf course, made sure that I could actually play and visualise the golf course. And I felt the most calm I have in a major in a long time. Unfortunately, it didn’t pan out.

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