World number one Rory McIlroy expressed frustration with his performance at the Dubai Desert Classic, where Thomas Pieters, Michael Thorbjornsen and Richard Bland shared the halfway lead.
The tournament will spill into Monday after adverse weather on the first two days, with Belgian Pieters, Englishman Bland and American amateur Thorbjornsen sharing the lead on 10 under heading into the final two rounds.
McIlroy is tied for seventh place – along with Patrick Reed, after their spat earlier in the week – on eight under.
The Northern Irishman was unhappy with his second round, however, after carding a 70 following his first-round 66.
McIlroy birdied the third and made an eagle putt from 33 feet on the 13th, yet he bogeyed the 10th and could not beat par on any other hole.
"More of the same really," said McIlroy when asked for his thoughts on Saturday's round.
"I think I only hit two fairways. Once you can't hit fairways and the rough is quite thick, it's hard to get any control on your ball, get close to par fours. A little rusty, I need to do a bit of work on it.
"I've chipped and putted it well and got myself around the course okay, been able to post a couple of decent scores and at least have a chance going into the last few days. But definitely more negatives than positives – I need to go and figure it out on the range."
McIlroy was, however, pleased the tournament organisers extended the event through to Monday.
He said: "I'm glad that they've gone to Monday and all the field have the opportunity to play 72 holes. It's such a big event, I think the discrepancy between these big events and the lesser ones, that fourth day could mean a lot to someone for changing the course of their year or their career.
"We can still get to our destinations on Monday night. Thankfully for me, there's two more rounds."
Reed also went round in 70 on Saturday, while Spain's Adri Arnaus, Sweden's Marcus Kinhult and Connor Syme of Scotland stood tied for fourth on nine under par.
Pieters, meanwhile, recovered from a sloppy front nine by having seven birdies after the turn.
American Thorbjornsen carded an eagle and seven birdies as he went round in 64, while Englishman Dan Bradbury registered the best score of the round, a 63, to join McIlroy and Reed on eight under, with Ian Poulter also in the eight-man group on that score.
"It feels good," Thorbjornsen said. "I didn't have the best round yesterday and the day before, felt like I missed a lot of putts out there. I thought I had a pretty good game plan but just stuck to it today. I actually made some putts.
"I enjoy playing professional golf a lot and I'm still an amateur, but just the golf courses that we play, the crowd out there, it's what I'm dreaming of ever since I was five or six years old. It just feels good to be out there."
'The game is testing me' – More agony for McIlroy as Horschel wins BMW PGA Championship
Rory McIlroy admitted golf is "testing" him more than usual after enduring yet another near miss at the BMW PGA Championship, losing to Billy Horschel in a play-off.
McIlroy, Horschel and Thriston Lawrence were forced into a three-way play-off after they all finished 20-under through four rounds at Wentworth.
Lawrence carded a final round of 65 to close a two-shot gap to McIlroy and Horschel, but the South African bogeyed the first play-off hole to put himself out of contention.
Horschel then wrapped up his second triumph at Wentworth with an eagle on the second, having previously triumphed at the event in 2021.
McIlroy has endured a frustrating year, missing two close-range putts when in pole position to win the US Open in June, then slipping again on the final round to finish second at last week's Irish Open.
Speaking after Sunday's play-off, the Northern Irishman said: "Last week was a tough one but I left there with my head held high with the way I played the last hole, trying to make three.
"Two weeks in a row I've played well. Just not quite well enough. The game is testing me a little more than it has done in the past, but that's fine.
"It could have been a different year but the nice thing is there's next year and the year after and the year after and the year after.
"If you think of my career as a 30-year journey, it's only one year in a 30-year journey, and hopefully the other 29 are a little more productive or a little bit better."
Horschel, meanwhile, admitted the struggles of the four-time major winner, a close friend of his, put a slight dampener on his victory.
"I'm thrilled and excited for the way I played," Horschel said.
"At the same time I'm a little disappointed – Rory is a great friend of mine and he's a generational talent. I know how close he's been this year so I feel for him.
"I needed a bit of luck. There was a lot of luck on my side to get this victory today."
McIlroy pleased with 'solid' round as he chases Manassero at Wentworth
Rory McIlroy was pleased with a 'solid' bogey-free round of 66 as he sits joint-second on 15 under par, three shots off leader Matteo Manassero, ahead of the final day of the BMW PGA Championship.
McIlroy carded a six-under round with four birdies and one eagle on the fourth, only bettered by leader Manassero's 63 and Billy Horschel's 65, which included a run of seven straight birdies and put him in a tie for second alongside the Northern Irishman.
The 35-year-old, who won the event in 2014, was happy enough with his third round, despite finding the water on 18 and scrambling a par on the scoreable final hole.
He said to Sky Sports: "I had a few chances that I let slip there on the back nine, but I got going out there on moving day, shooting six under par, trying to keep up with Matteo.
"It was another solid day, my lowest score of the week and no bogeys. I know I'm going to need another low one tomorrow to try to catch him.
"I love it here. It would be amazing to get my name on the trophy again."
Manassero, who also tasted success at Wentworth in 2013, was delighted with his round, coming towards the end of a season in which he has returned from the wilderness to play some of his very best golf.
"I have to be honest, one of the best rounds I've ever played," the Italian said afterwards.
"Thinking of the difficult years, to be standing here right now in the lead - it feels amazing."
"My perspective has changed. I'm going to go out and enjoy tomorrow."
Spieth expecting to be tournament ready for 2025 PGA season
Jordan Spieth is expecting to return to action for the 2025 PGA Tour season after undergoing successful wrist surgery last month.
Spieth, who last competed at the FedEx St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind, failed to find his best form during the recent campaign out on the course.
The former world number one started the season strong, finishing third in The Sentry and then, a few weeks later, tied for sixth in the WM Phoenix Open
But the American missed the final two playoffs in the BMW Championship and Tour Championship, while also missing seven cuts, one of which included the Masters.
Spieth was seen sporting a cast on his first appearance since the surgery and was able to reveal the timeline for his return to action.
"I think that by 2025, by Jan. 1, it's my goal to be tournament-ready," Spieth told Golfweek in a Q&A published on Monday.
"And for me, that would be not just going out and seeing how it feels, you know, but expecting to play at my ceiling."
Spieth has three major wins and 13 overall victories on the PGA Tour but has not emerged victorious since the RBC Heritage in April 2022.
The American did not earn entry into the 2025 season-opening tournament. However, he is able to play in the Sony Open in Hawaii at the start of January.
While the 31-year-old's main reason for surgery was to see him return to form, he also detailed the personal reasons for his decision to go under the knife.
"I would say the number one reason why I ended up getting it done was because it affects my way of life at home," Spieth said.
"Like when it would dislocate and I couldn't get it back in, it would happen when I'm getting my daughter out of the bath, I'm putting a sweatshirt on or it just so random that it was like, I didn't want it to continue, and it happened more and more.
"And it wasn't going to heal itself based on a number of different docs and scans and whatever. So it's just inevitable."
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