Fleetwood is the course record holder at Carnoustie and despite some cold and wet conditions he capped off a fine round with a birdie at the last to card the best score of the week.
Tiger Woods was finding it a bit of a struggle in his second round but Rory McIlroy was making light of the cold and wet Carnoustie in the Open Championship.
Different weather conditions greeted the early starters on the second day of the 147th Open Championship at Carnoustie with light rain falling.
There was still very little wind but the additional moisture on a course baked hard and dry by weeks of sun just slowed things down a touch, with balls not running out as far as they did on Thursday.
McIlroy, who ended round one as the 10/1 favourite for the Claret Jug, set off at two-under after a battling round on Thursday.
American Ryan Moore, who shot a three-under 68 in round one to sit two off the lead set by compatriot Kevin Kisner, was one of the early starters as he looks to close the gap on the leader.
The 2016 champion Henrik Stenson, starting the day one under, and England’s Tommy Fleetwood, the course record holder, are also both out on the course looking to set an early mark.
Moore birdied the third to move within one of the lead but three-time major winner Rory McIlroy missed a 15-foot birdie putt at the first and escaped with a par after twice finding rough at the second.
Unlike Thursday the Northern Irishman chose not to go for the green at the short par-four third but still overshot the putting surface with his approach
McIlroy missed the fairway again at the next but recovered to 25 feet only to roll the birdie attempt past the hole for a fourth successive par to remain two under.
Fleetwood, however, made his move with back-to-back birdies at four and five to join McIlroy on two under, three behind Kisner who was one of the afternoon starters.
McIlroy finally carded his first birdie of the day at the seventh after hitting his approach to 12 feet to move within two of the lead.
He was joined on three under by playing partner Thorbjorn Olesen with his second birdie of the day at the same hole.
Three birdies in four holes from the third saw 2015 champion Zach Johnson climb into joint second on four under.
Moore, who turned in 35, had hacked out of the rough into the burn at the 10th and a double-bogey six dropped him to two under.
Francesco Molinari, who won his first PGA Tour title a fortnight ago, carded his second birdie of the day at the par-five sixth to get to three under and was joined by Fleetwood, whose four-under round was the joint best of the day.
McIlroy moved to within a shot of the lead with a 12-footer for birdie at the 10th and missed a good chance to go level with Kisner at the next.
Tiger Woods’ decision to take driver, which he used just once on the par-five sixth yesterday, at the second proved to be the wrong one but it was almost more costly for spectators.
Having carved a shot into a bank of rough he attempted a raking hook with the ball above his feet at almost waist height but it came out low and hard and skirted inches away from the packed gallery he had only just asked to move back a couple of yards.
A bogey – it was 10 holes before he dropped a shot in his first round – saw him fall to one over.
OTS News on Social Media