McIlroy and Hatton tied as Chacarra stays in hunt

-5 T Hatton (Eng), R McIlroy (NI); -4 K Reitan (Nor), J Luiten (Ned); -3 M Lindberg (Swe), F Schott (Ger), V Perez (Fra); -2 J Schaper (SA), J Rahm (Spa), D Puig (Spa)

Selected others: -1 E Chacarra (Spa); E A Scott (Aus), C Hill (Sco); +3 T Fleetwood (Eng); +6 A Rai (Eng); +8 P Reed (US)

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Rory McIlroy is tied for the lead at the halfway mark of the season-ending DP World Tour Championship as he chases a record-equalling eighth Race to Dubai title.

The six-time major winner followed a three-under opening 69 with an up-and-down 70 to join England's Tyrrell Hatton at the top at Jumeirah Golf Estates in Dubai.

Hatton mixed five birdies and two bogeys to shoot 69, while overnight leader Joost Luiten carded a 73 to lie one shot back alongside Norway's Kristoffer Reitan.

McIlroy, who is guaranteed to equal Colin Montgomerie's record haul of eight season-long crowns with victory this week, sits four shots ahead of Race to Dubai leader Eugenio Chacarra.

The Spaniard, who won three times earlier this season to lead the standings entering this week, birdied his final two holes to finish one under.

"I think it's been a bit eye-opening to see the scoring the first two days," said world number two McIlroy.

"I don't think the wind is supposed to be as up over the weekend, so the scoring might be a little bit better.

"As I said, the scoring this week, because of this course set-up, just isn't as good as in previous years. I've been coming back to the golf course for 15 plus years, and you just associate this course with pretty low scoring.

"And then when it's not, you just have to reframe what is a good score. Anything in the 60s, it seems, this week is a good score."

Hunting a fourth DP World Tour Championship win and fifth successive Race to Dubai triumph, McIlroy seized the lead with four birdies in his opening 10 holes.

However, the back-to-back Masters champion's momentum stalled with a bogey five at the 12th and he squandered further shots at the 16th and 17th.

But the world number two made a closing birdie for the second day in a row to secure his place in Saturday's final pairing alongside Ryder Cup team-mate Hatton (08:40 GMT).

While Hatton cannot win the Race to Dubai, he boosted his chances of securing a ninth DP World Tour victory - and first since leaving LIV Golf - with another solid display in windy conditions.

The world number 23 made three birdies in a bogey-free front nine before slipping up at the 10th.

He knocked his approach to two feet to set up another birdie at 15, and while he stumbled at the par-three 17th after finding the greenside bunker, he bounced back with a closing birdie.

"It's been tricky. I thought the back nine played really difficult yesterday," said Hatton, who finished second behind Jon Rahm in Abu Dhabi last week.

"The wind was sort of moving round just enough that it goes from slightly off the right to then more down and club selection just becomes really difficult.

"Today it felt a little bit easier, but then just towards the end there, the wind sort of got stronger than where it was yesterday, so then that makes it more challenging.

"But overall, it's been a solid start to the tournament."

South Africa's Jayden Schaper (68) and Spain's two-time major winner Rahm (71) - both of whom can still clinch the Race to Dubai - are well placed at two under.

However, Patrick Reed's hopes of becoming the second American to lift the Harry Vardon Trophy suffered a significant blow after the 2018 Masters champion followed an opening 75 with a 77.

Follow live text updates of the DP World Tour Championship final round on the BBC Sport website and app on Sunday.