Rory McIlroy made three birdies in his last four holes in the second round to make the cut for the weekend at the Australian Open at Royal Melbourne.

The Masters champion, who won this tournament in 2013, carded a second round three-under 68 to finish inside the cut line and move to two-under after two rounds.

After an up and down first round, the Northern Irish golfer recovered in the second to move seven shots behind joint leaders Daniel Rodrigues and Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, who are on nine-under.

McIlroy, who is featuring at the Australian Open for the first time since 2014, made a birdie and eight pars in a solid start on the front nine.

He made four more pars on the way back to the clubhouse before faltering on the par-five 14th with a bogey that included a rare air shot.

A birdie at the 15th, 17th and 18th helped him make the cut and climb steadily up the leaderboard.

McIlroy felt the conditions were much improved compared to the tricky crosswinds he faced on the opening day.

“Opposite wind, coming out of the south so it definitely played like a different golf course, different clubs off tees,” he told Sky Sports.

“A few different options. It was great, the course is firming up. It’s really making you think out there, especially with your approach shots.

“Certainly not my best stuff out there the last few days but it was nice to finish the way I did.

“It wasn’t looking great after the bogey on 14, but overall, a great finish and delighted to be here for the weekend.”

The 36-year-old also believes a positive start to the third round can set him up to challenge for a second Stonehaven Cup.

“Seven isn’t too far back, I feel if I can go out there tomorrow morning and shoot a good one, I can get myself right back in the tournament.”

Elsewhere, Scotland’s Cameron Adam, appearing at just his second tournament as a professional, also made the cut with a second round of 64 to move to one-under after two rounds.

Jeff Guan, a two-time Australian amateur champion – who is permanently blind in his left eye – missed the cut as he finished tied for 112th.