8am Round-Up: Russell Knox up to 8th in Tour Championship

Russell Knox shot a four-under 66 - the best score of the day - at East Lake in Atlanta. Picture: Getty Images

The Scot came home in 31, having birdied the 11th, 13th, 14th and 17th, to move to one-under for the tournament after opening the PGA Tour’s season finale with a 73.

He sits joint-eighth, six shots behind leader Dustin Johnson after the US Open champion backed up his first-round 66 with a 67.

“To be honest, I had no idea what to expect after that poor first round,” said Knox, who needs to win the event to have a chance of claiming the FedEx Cup and a whopping bonus.

“I was really just hoping to get a little bit of momentum going and what I’ve done has put myself back in the mix and that’s super.”

Johnson, who leads the FedEx Cup standings, is a shot ahead of compatriot Kevin Chappell, with another American, Kevin Kisner, sittng joint-third with Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama on three-under.

World No 1 Jason withdrew after just eight holes of his second round due to back trouble.

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Pamela Pretswell has home player Azahara Munoz in her sights heading into the third round in the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España Femenino in Marbella.

The Scot sits second, one behind Munoz, after storming into contention with a five-under-par 67 at Aloha Golf Club for a five-under total.

“I had five birdies,” reported Pretswell. “I’ve only used driver three times in the last two days so I’ve been hitting a lot of 3-woods off the tee to get my rhythm.

“I’m not one of the ones that likes to hit driver everywhere. I’m happy to mix it up with whatever I need to hit off the tee to just get myself into a good position.”

Scottish-based American Beth Allen is also in the mix, sitting third on four-under, while Laura Murray is six off the pace in joint-ninth after maintaining the form that landed her a win on the LET’s development circuit in Sweden last week.

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First-round leaders Scotland have slipped to 13th, 23 shots behind champions-elect Australia, after the third round of the Eisenhower Trophy in Mexico.

Grant Forrest and Robert MacIntyre, with 71 and 72 respectively, provided the counting scores for the Scots as Connor Syme, the first-day star, struggled to a 78.

Australia take a 16-shot lead into the final round after cementing their position in top spot as Curtis Luck fired a 63 and Cameron Davis added a 68, both bogey-free efforts, for a 32-under total.

Ireland sit second, one ahead of the US, with England two shots further back in fourth.

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Colin Montgomerie is five shots off the lead after an opening four-under 67 in the Pacific Links Bear Mountain Championship in Vancouver.

Scott McCarron leads the Champions Tour event while Senior Open champion and last weekend’s Pebble Beach winner Paul Broadhurst is two shots behind Montgomerie.

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Bathgate’s Louis Gaughan finished as leading Scot in the PGA EuroPro Tour’s Clipper Logistics Championship at Moor Allerton.

With a closing 70 for a three-under-par 210 total, he just sneaked into the money in joint-17th.

Northern Ireland’s Jonathan Caldwell picked up the £10,000 top prize with a 203 aggregate, winning by one from England’s Kevin Harper.

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Scotland, the European champions, beat Ireland 5.5-3.5 in their final match to claim third spot behind winners England in the Senior Men’s Home Internationals at Machynys Peninsula in South Wales.

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Justin Rose has been named the Hilton European Tour Golfer of the Month for August following his historic Olympics victory in Rio, where he overcame Henrik Stenson in a titanic battle which captured the imagination of sports fans around the world.

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Former Scottish Amateur champion Keith Macintosh has taken up his post as the new captain of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews following the traditional driving-in ceremony on the first tee of the Old Course.

“I was a little more relaxed on the driving range than I was there,” he admitted afterwards. “I was a bit quicker there but I won’t tell anyone where I was aiming.

“When you look around at all the distinguished past captains it makes you feel pretty intimidated and humble really. I am very much looking forward to serving as captain and representing the Club.”

Helensburgh man Macintosh won the Scottish Amateur Championship at Prestwick in 1979 and the Belgian Open Amateur Championship the following year.

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Kenny Hutton (Downfield) and Graeme Brown (Montrose Links) shared top spot in the Midland Alliance event at Altyh after carding three-under-par 67s at the Perthshire course.

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Forrester Park pair Paul Edgcombe and Jamie Taylor finished fifth, four shots behind winners Adam Powell and Matt Leach from Hartford, in the grand final of the Lombard Trophy at Vila Sol in Portugal.