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Day two of the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship showed little improvement for the Nike Golf ambassadors, Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods, who were among the later starters on Friday at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
For Rory an opening 75 with his new Nike clubs and ball having left him outside the top 65 and ties and Woods, meanwhile, hoping to improve on a first day 72 that left him in a tie for 36th place overnight.
But things just got worse for Woods - and indeed McIlroy - as both bogeyed the fourth and fifth to be four over and five over at one point.
McIlroy had briefly revived his hopes of being around for the weekend when he pitched to two feet on the long eighth and then chipped in at the ninth - after almost driving the water.
Rory took an adventurous route, to say the least, on the tenth. After driving left close to the trees he went across the fairway into a bunker, came out in the rough and put his next in more sand.
A bogey six and even after saving par from 12 feet at the short 12th - he was in yet another bunker and signed in the end for a round of 75 on 6 over par. Well outside the cut mark and perhaps a very predictable result given the hype and media speculation about the new Nike deal over recent months.
Indeed, with the launch only last Monday of the Nike Golf relationship, and all the related media interviews, the outcome in his first outing of 2013 was really no surprise. No doubt Nike, the greek goddess for victory, will have more major events in sight on her horizon.
With four weeks off McIlroy has time to sort out his new clubs, and his putter, with reports that he reverted on Friday to the Scotty Cameron putter for the second round given his putting woes on the opening day.
Woods two-putted the tenth, but went over the next green and with a bogey and was outside the cut line again at 73rd on three over par – albeit just one stroke off the projected cut line.
Justin Rose remained the man to catch as the second round developed in glorious conditions and the World Number Five Rose resumed on five under par alongside Welshman Jamie Donaldson.
Making his debut in the tournament, the 32 year old birdied the 16th, second and fourth, but also bogeyed the third after pulling his pitch into the thick rough.
Rose had only Open Champion Ernie Els for company this time, defending champion Robert Rock having pulled out through illness after a four over 76.
Els remained one under after a back nine 36, but then went from sand to trees to rough for a double bogey six at the 439 yard third. But the South African star came back with birdies at the fifth and sixth, but three-putted the next to stand level par, just inside the expected cut mark.
In the group ahead Padraig Harrington was also level par after 16 holes and Paul Lawrie - another former Open Champion, of course - one over.
