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Rory McIlroy's second-round 65 left him two behind halfway leader Billy Horschel at the Tour Championship.
The World No 1 McIlroy overcame a bizarre incident when his tee shot at the 14th bounced into a spectator's pocket and went on to produce a birdie-birdie finish on a steamy day at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.
The Northern Irishman's five-under effort was the best of the day and moved him through the field into a share of second place alongside Australia's Jason Day (67) and American Chris Kirk (68) at six-under overall.
Horschel, who won last week's BMW Championship, remains out in front at eight under after a second straight round of 66.
Along with Horschel, Kirk, Bubba Watson and Hunter Mahan, McIlroy knows victory on Sunday would also secure the overall FedEx Cup title - and with it a bonus of $10 million.
And with Mahan languishing 14 shots off the lead and Watson eight adrift, the battle for the richest prize in golf looks to be down to three players.
McIlroy insists the title means more to him than the money, the 25-year-old keen to end a brilliant season on a high note after four victories, including two major titles in the Open and US PGA Championship.
The four-time major winner holed from 11 feet for his first birdie of the day on the second but bogeyed the fourth for the second day in succession after his drive plugged in the face of a fairway bunker.
McIlroy had been frustrated by taking one step forward and one step back on Thursday, but this time took two steps forward with birdies from close range on the sixth and seventh, although another birdie chance did go begging on the par-five ninth.
He never threatened to hole birdie putts on the 10th or 11th, but very nearly holed his approach to the 12th, his ball clattering into the pin.
Fortunately for McIlroy it finished just eight feet away and he holed the putt, before his round took a bizarre turn on the 14th, where his wayward drive clipped a tree and somehow dropped straight into a spectator's shorts pocket.
"I got really lucky," McIlroy told Sky Sports. "It ricocheted off a tree and went straight into his pocket somehow. That ball could have went anywhere and luckily I was able to take a drop and hit it on the green and make par.
"The guy probably deserved more than just the handshake that I gave him."
For the second day running McIlroy birdied the 17th and then put the icing on the cake by holing from 25 feet on the last, adding: "To finish like that with two birdies puts me in a great position going into the weekend."
Justin Rose carded five birdies and one bogey in a round of 66 to move to two under par overall, one ahead of Ryder Cup team-mate Sergio Garcia, who bogeyed the last for a 71.
Germany's Martin Kaymer complained of fatigue in his "marathon" effort of playing six tournaments in the last seven weeks, the US Open champion recording a 69 to lie two over par.
