Things are getting interesting. On a leaderboard that’s as tight as some of the lies you’ll get on the Carnoustie links, the 147th Open Championship is shaping up nicely.

The American advance, with Zach Johnson and Kevin Kisner at its vanguard in a tie at the top, features six US players in the top 10 but Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy manoeuvred themselves into a position to pounce heading into the weekend.

Having won the last five majors, the boys from the other side of the Atlantic have certainly thrown a star-spangled spanner into the works of European ambitions recently.

Johnson bolstered the onslaught with a 67 for his six-under tally while Kisner was left to rue a costly trip into the Barry Burn on the 18th as his two- shot lead evaporated late on and he slithered back into a share of the lead.

The rain may have arrived yesterday morning but, after such a prolonged dry spell, it needed a downpour that would’ve left Noah in an anguished lather to soften this place up.

The fast, firm terrain of the opening day probably should’ve had its own yellow alert warning from the Met Office but the hefty downpours which ushered in day two took some of the sizzle out of the seared turf.

Fleetwood was still on fire, mind you. His super, bogey-free 65 was as neat as a calligraphy evening class as he burnished a nicely constructed card with three birdies on each half to move into a tie for third. Putts for threes from 30 feet on the ninth and 15-feet on the last provided an uplifting end to his out and in.

On a damp morning littered with more brollies than a Mary Poppins convention, Fleetwood didn’t actually have an umbrella. A free, Open-branded one kept him sheltered as he set about swinging in the rain. He was home and dry after a terrific thrust.

Last season in the Dunhill Links Championship, Fleetwood carved out a course record 63 at Carnoustie, albeit on a set-up that is a lot different to the Open presentation. “This is not a course record but it’s pretty good,” said the Southport man who closed with a thrilling 63 in last month’s US Open to grab a charging second place.

Like his surge up the leaderboard yesterday, Fleetwood’s career has come on in leaps and bounds.

Three years ago in the Open at St Andrews he sagged to a 76 on the Friday and missed the cut. He recorded just one top-10 finish in the next 12 months before rediscovering his form, hauling himself out of the doldrums and barging his way up into the world’s top 10.

“This was a better day than that one as that was the start of the downward slope,” he said of that St Andrews slump in 2015. “It’s something that I’ve always got to look back on . . . and something I hope I never do again. I have come a long way as a golfer and as a person.”

Fleetwood’s record in golf’s most venerated championship is modest; three missed cuts in five appearances.

As he said in that last paragraph, though, he’s a different golfer now and the Claret Jug is lying seductively in front of him. “I can’t lie about it, if I could pick one tournament in my life to win, it would be the Open,” he cooed. “I’ve never been anywhere near before. But, so far, I’m up there.”

McIlroy is up there too, a second successive 69 for a 138 giving those in front of him a little warning nudge.

The 2014 champion has tried to embrace the adventure and carefree abandon of his younger days while reining himself in accordingly. On a dreich morning which did not lend itself to an all out offensive, McIlroy produced a pragmatic performance.

The 29-year-old admits he’s been getting a little bit too tentative in recent majors and wants to hang loose. He was also required to hang on in there yesterday. “I just got on with it today and I didn’t let the conditions get to me,” said McIlroy, who offset leaked shots at the 12th and 15th with a bag of four birdies.

“One of my thoughts is to go out and give it my all. I’d rather fail by trying 100 per cent than holding back.”

With Kisner and Johnson perched at the summit, another American, Pat Perez, could have joined them only to spill a shot on the last in a 68 for 137 while Xander Schaueffele winkled an eagle and two birdies out of the back nine in a 66 to finish alongside his compatriot.

Matt Kuchar, the runner-up last year, hoisted himself back into the mix again with a 68 for a 138 with Jordan Spieth, the man who beat Kuchar to the Claret Jug, a shot further back after a 67 illuminated by a dinky pitch-in for birdie on the third.

Tiger Woods is hovering on the level-par mark while a pat on the back was given to 60-year-old Bernhard Langer, who made the weekend.

Only one Scot survived the cut. Amid that cloud, there was a silver lining, though. Sam Locke made it on the limit . . . and won the amateur silver medal.