TOM MCKIBBIN REMAINS in contention at the halfway point of the Qatar Masters on the DP World Tour. 

McKibbin followed yesterday’s 69 with a two-under round of 70, and trails leader Haydn Barron by four shots. Having holed out from 82 yards for an eagle on the second hole yesterday, McKibbin took bogey this time around after his tee shot bled to the right, handing back the birdie he picked up on the opening hole. 

Another birdie followed on the fifth, and then another bogey on the par-three eighth. McKibbin then birdied holes 12 and 14, and three-putted on 15 for another bogey. He finished his round with a birdie on the par-five 18th. 

McKibbin tees off at 11.06am Irish time on Saturday, and is the only Irish golfer in the field. 

Barron leads compatriot Harrison Endycott and Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino by two shots, with McKibbin one of 10 golfers in a tie for sixth at five-under.