France's Raphael Jacquelin claimed the halfway lead in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship today as the luck of the draw had a major impact.

Jacquelin carded a second round of 70 in the pro-am event to finish nine under par, one shot ahead of Irish duo Shane Lowry and Padraig Harrington, England's Oliver Wilson and France's Alexander Levy.

Eleven of the top 12 scores came from players who were at Kingsbarns today and Carnoustie yesterday, when calm conditions meant traditionally the hardest of the three venues played relatively easy.

Wind and rain made scoring more difficult on day two but Jacquelin birdied his final two holes to move into pole position for a fifth European Tour title.

"I'm pretty happy, especially the way I finished," said Jacquelin, whose last win came in a record-equalling nine-hole play-off in the Spanish Open last year. "I birdied 17 and 18 so it was good before having dinner and going to rest.

"I've been working hard every year since the last 20 years to be at this position. I feel good. It's a long weekend. It's a lot of golf to play, so you know, the game of golf, it's not that easy. You just have to stick to the same plan and see what happens."

Lowry, who finished joint third in this event 12 months ago, was the only player in the top 12 to play at St Andrews today, meaning he will face Carnoustie tomorrow before the final round is again played over the Old Course.

"To be honest, the way I played to shoot two under was quite good," said Lowry after a round containing four bogeys and six birdies. "The forecast was pretty bad today and everyone was expecting the worst, but it wasn't actually that bad.

"It played quite easy toward the end and I could have picked up a couple more, but I'm happy with the position I'm in with two rounds to go. Hopefully I can go out to Carnoustie tomorrow and hopefully the weather is not too bad over there and I can shoot a decent score."

Harrington won the first of his back-to-back Open titles at Carnoustie in 2007 but has not won a tournament on a major worldwide tour since the 2008 US PGA.

The 43-year-old was a vice-captain at last week's Ryder Cup and although he admits he has a lot more to learn before bidding to captain the side, he has set himself an ambitious target.

"I think the big one for me, I've got to get inside the top 15 in the world to make the Olympics in 2016," said Harrington, who is currently ranked 324th. "I've got 22 months to go. I'm starting at absolute zero probably at the moment.

"I really feel good about my game, so I believe I can do it."

Scottish duo Richie Ramsay and Chris Doak are two shots off the pace on seven under, with compatriot Stephen Gallacher another shot back and Gallacher's Ryder Cup team-mate Rory McIlroy five off the lead on four under.

McIlroy, who is keen to make the cut in the team event so his amateur partner, his father Gerry, can play at St Andrews on his 55th birthday on Sunday, started the day nine shots off the pace and dropped back to two over par with a bogey on the 14th.

However, the world number one responded in style with a superb fairway-wood approach to the par five 16th and rolled in the eagle putt from 15 feet on his way to a round of 67 at Kingsbarns.

"I think the eagle on 16 kickstarted something for me," the 25-year-old said. "I just went from there, started to knock a few putts in. I felt like I struck the ball pretty well for the first couple of days, but just to see a few putts roll in sort of gave me a little bit of confidence and played well after that.

"It would mean an awful lot to win at St Andrews. But if I didn't, I wouldn't mind waiting until July next year."

That is when the Northern Irishman will defend his Open title.