The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Syme the leader at halfway
Drumoig’s Connor Syme will take a two-shot lead into the weekend at the ISPS Handa Wales Open after battling through ‘brutal’ conditions at Celtic Manor for a second round 70 as he chases a first win on the European Tour.
Fife’s Connor Syme defied “brutal” conditions to remain on course for a maiden European Tour title in the ISPS Handa Wales Open at Celtic Manor yesterday.
Syme overcame strong winds to add a second round of 70 to his opening 66 and finish six under par, two shots ahead of fellow Scot Liam Johnston, Jordan Smith, Sebastian Soderberg, Li Haotong, Nacho Elvira and Sihwan Kim.
The 25-year-old held a one-shot lead after 54 holes of the Celtic Classic at the same venue last week, but had to settle for a share of third place following a final round of 71 which was compiled either side of a two-hour lightning delay.
“That was brutal, to be honest,” Syme said. “I thought yesterday was tough, but going through what we went through there, we got quite lucky yesterday.
“It was a real grind, some of the hardest conditions I’ve played in.
“Practising on the putting green it (the ball) was moving a lot so I wasn’t sure if we were going to get started, but I’m delighted with 70.
“Although both my bogeys (on the third and 16th) were three putts, it was one of those days where you’re just trying to find the green and missing it on the correct side was key, to be honest.
“Obviously it’s a course I’m getting to like. I’m really just rolling with the same confidence from last week. It’s weird going through the yardage book from last week and I’d draw a line under it and start with new pins.
“I was thinking it’s a new week and just knuckle down and start again. I’m definitely taking confidence from last week but obviously I was fully focused on this week when I teed off.”
Smith questioned whether play should have taken place in the bad weather, despite remaining in contention for a second European Tour title following a
72.
“I feel like I’ve been out there a week,” Smith, who won the European Open in 2017, said.
“It was borderline out there with how quick those greens were and the wind. I don’t think we should have been out there but you’ve got to deal with it and get on and that’s what we did and managed to grind out a score.”
England’s Sam Horsfield, who is seeking back-to-back wins at Celtic Manor and a third victory in the space of four weeks, is eight shots off the lead after adding a 71 to his opening 73.
Calum Hill is two over, Richie Ramsay and Daniel Young both three over while David Law is one shot further back after a 75 and just made the cut along with Robert Macintyre who carded a 78 – 10 shots more than Thursday.
Scots heading home are Grant Forrest, Ewan Ferguson and Stephen Gallacher.
● American Scottie Scheffler secured his place in the history books with a brilliant round of 59 in the Northern Trust at TPC Boston.
Scheffler carded 12 birdies and no bogeys on the par-71 layout to reach 13 under par and share the early clubhouse lead with Australian Cameron Davis in the first FedEx Cup play-off event.
The 24-year-old from Texas, who finished in a tie for fourth in the US PGA Championship earlier this month, is the 12th player to break 60 on the PGA Tour, with six of those rounds coming since 2016.
● Five-time major winner Phil Mickelson plans to make his Champions Tour debut next week.
The left-hander became eligible for the Champions Tour after turning 50 in June and announced his plans to contest the Charles Schwab Series in Missouri from August 24-26 on social media.
Mickelson has recorded three top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour in 2020, most recently finishing in a tie for second in the WGC-FedEx St Jude Invitational in Memphis.