Penang, Malaysia: Danny Chia of Malaysia birdied three of his closing four holes to open-up a two-shot lead at the halfway stage of the PGM Bukit Jawi Championship on Thursday.
The 42-year-old fired an impressive six-under-par 66 to lead the chasing pack on an 11-under-par 133 total at the RM200,000 (approximately US$50,000) Asian Development Tour (ADT) event which is staged at the Bukit Jawi Golf Resort.
Casey O’Toole of the United States, ranked second on the ADT Order of Merit, posted a 67 while Australia’s Jordan Sherratt (70) and Thai duo Nitithorn Thippong (69) and Itthipat Buranatanyarat (70) were a further two shots back in tied third on 137s.
Chia, a two-time ADT winner, was solid with his irons as he peppered the flags for close range birdies and returned with a blemish free scorecard. He was three-under after 10 holes and returned with birdies on holes 15, 16 and 18 to take charge.
“I’m happy because I’ve been struggling with my ball striking. I spoke with my coach on Monday and I started to gain some confidence. Most of my birdies were from close range which was nice,” said Chia.
O’Toole birdied four out of five par-fives to stay in the hunt for a first ADT victory. A win this week will see the American overtake Hsieh Chi-hsien of Chinese Taipei atop the Order of Merit.
“I took care of most of the par fives and played well. There wasn’t anything special in my round but I’ve been playing alright. Hopefully I can shoot two more low rounds and keep this momentum going,” said O’Toole.
The cut was set at three-over-par 147 with a total of 52 players advancing into the last two rounds.
The ADT will continue to reward the top-five finishers on the Order of Merit at the end of this season with Asian Tour cards for 2016.
With the Olympic Games looming in 2016 where golf will be reintroduced as a medal sport, players in the region could earn their spots in Rio de Janeiro by earning Official World Golf Ranking points through the Asian Tour and ADT.
Leading second round scores
133 - Danny CHIA (MAS) 67 66
135 - Casey O'TOOLE (USA) 68 67
137 - Jordan SHERRATT (AUS) 67 70, Nitithorn THIPPONG (THA) 68 69, Itthipat BURANATANYARAT (THA) 67 70
138 - Poom SAKSANSIN (THA) 68 70, Josh SALAH (USA) 68 70
139 - Atthaphon SRIBOONKAEW (THA) 68 71, Sean RIORDAN (NZL) 68 71, Kemarol BAHARIN (MAS) 71 68, Ratchapol JANTAVARA (THA) 70 69, Piya SWANGARUNPORN (THA) 70 69
140 - Lion GOH (MAS) 67 73, KHOR Kheng Hwai (MAS) 69 71
141 - Rory HIE (INA) 69 72, Mitsuhiko HASHIZUME (JPN) 72 69, Hamza AMIN (PAK) 68 73
142 - Tirawat KAEWSIRIBANDIT (THA) 68 74, Rudy THUILLIER (FRA) 70 72, Nattapong PUTTA (THA) 70 72, Masaru TAKAHASHI (JPN) 69 73, KIM Leun-kwang (MAS) 73 69
143 - Jordan IRAWAN (INA) 71 72, Sukree OTHMAN (MAS) 72 71, Arie Irawan (MAS) 70 73, Blake SNYDER (USA) 71 72, Airil Rizman ZAHARI (MAS) 73 70, Feroz Singh GAREWAL (IND) 72 71, Pijit PETCHKASEM (THA) 73 70
