Lawrie makes good progress
England’s Ross Fisher and Irishman Peter Lawrie were the big movers early in the second round of the OSIM Singapore Masters – as Swede Niclas Fasth looked set for an early exit.
Marcus Both, the on-song Australian, has a two-stroke lead having picked up five shots after 12 holes of his second round.
Fisher put together an inconspicuous back nine of 35 having bogeyed his first hole of the day.
But he made great strides on the back nine with a run of four straight birdies between the second and the fifth holes for a four-under 68 and a share of fourth place.
It could have been better too, he suggested: “To get on a run with four birdies in a row is always nice, but to end it with a bogey is not fantastic.
“I finished with three pars so nothing spectacular, although at five under I am right in the mix.
“Last year Nick [Dougherty] finished 18 under, but top 10 was six under so I have a nice figure in my head if that is a good target and I only have one more shot to go to get there.”
Lawrie was in equally good form, with three birdies on the front nine and two on the back moving him, like Fisher, to five under and two behind overnight leader and local favourite Mardan Mamat.
But Both was the man with the bit between his teeth. Aided by an eagle at the 11th, he was three under through his first nine holes, and back-to-back birdies at the first and second pushed him clear of the field.
It put him 12 shots ahead of Fasth, who arrived at Laguna National Golf and Country Club as one of the favourites.
He is the top-ranked player at the event, but has struggled since teeing off yesterday and his par round of 72 left him three over and likely to miss the cut.
Also in trouble is another of those tipped to go well, Thai Thongchai Jaidee, who started the day four over par.
Two bogeys in his first two holes did not help the former paratrooper before three birdies in four holes after the turn and one at the last helped him back to two over.
Peter Hanson, of Sweden, put in a solid display, recording five birdies to move up to five under with his round of 69, spoiled only by a bogey at the last.
Joint overnight leader Australian Marcus Fraser dropped off the pace with three bogeys and just the one birdie in his back nine 38 and he was two over for the day through 11.
Mamat and defending champion Dougherty, who shot an opening round 69, were due to tee off later in the day.
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