Overnight leader Panuwat Muenlek of Thailand maintained his lead at the halfway stage of the PGM Darulaman Championship after shooting a three-under-par 69 on Thursday.
The 30-year-old Thai stayed in front of the chasing pack with a 10-under-par 134 total to lead by two shots over Danny Masrin of Indonesia, who matched his efforts for the day with a 69, at the Darulaman Golf and Country Club.
American John Michael O’Toole and local hotshot Gavin Green shared third place on matching 137s following rounds of 68 and 69 respectively at the RM200,000 (approximately US$46,600) Asian Development Tour (ADT) event.
Local duo Airil Rizman Zahari (67) and Irfan Yusoff (69) settled a further shot back in fifth while American Nick Sherwood (72), Thai duo Chanat Sakulpolphaisan (72) and Nitithorn Thippong (70) shared seventh on 139 at the PGM Darulaman Championship.
Panuwat, chasing for a second victory on the region’s burgeoning Tour, lamented his poor approach shots but took pride in his commendable round where he amassed 28 putts to stay atop the leaderboard.
“My iron-play was not as good as yesterday. I wasn’t able to hit it as close as I did yesterday but my putting was still good. The pin positions were tougher today I thought so I am pleased with how I played,” said Panuwat, whose longest putt of the day came on the 16 where he sank a 25-footer for par.
Panuwat, who started from the 10, was even par at the turn before he nailed an eagle-birdie from the first and traded a birdie against a bogey on his way home.
“It’s been a while since I am in contention. I will keep it the same for the next two rounds and continue to play my best out there. I will stay focused and play shot by shot. Hopefully this will be my week,” added Panuwat.
The halfway cut of the PGM Darulaman Championship was set at one-over-par 145 with a total of 55 players advancing to the final two rounds.
The PGM Darulaman Championship, jointly sanctioned with the Professional Golf of Malaysia (PGM) Tour, is the ninth leg of the 2016 ADT season and also the Tour’s seventh stop in Malaysia this season.
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 2017.
Like all other ADT events, the PGM Darulaman Championship will also offer Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points, which will be key for players vying to qualify for the Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro this August.
For more information on the ADT, please visit www.asiandevelopmenttour.com
Leading second round scores:
134 – Panuwat MUENLEK (THA) 65 69
136 – Danny MASRIN (INA) 67 69
137 – John Michael O’TOOLE (USA) 69 68, Gavin GREEN (MAS) 68 69
138 – Airil Rizman ZAHARI (MAS) 71 67, Irfan YUSOFF (MAS) 69 69
139 – Nick SHERWOOD (USA) 67 72, Chanat SAKULPOLPHAISAN (THA) 67 72, Nitithorn THIPPONG (THA) 69 70
140 – R. Nachimuthu (MAS) 71 69, Itthipat BURANATANYARAT (THA) 69 71, Johannes VEERMAN (USA) 71 69, Suradit YONGCHAROENCHAI (THA) 69 71, James BYRNE (SCO) 67 73, George GANDRANATA (INA) 74 66, Pasamet POGAMNERD (THA) 70 70, Shubhankar SHARMA (IND) 70 70, John CATLIN (USA) 69 71
141 – Nicholas FUNG (MAS) 71 70, Lexus KEONINH (USA) 70 71, Sukree OTHMAN (MAS) 66 75
142 – Dodge KEMMER (USA) 71 71, Atthaphon SRIBOONKAEW (THA) 71 71, Josh SALAH (USA) 66 76, Danny CHIA (MAS) 70 72, Chikkarangappa. S (IND) 71 71, Kasidit LEPKURTE (THA) 72 70
