Luiten leads way as Lowry makes a move
Albatross puts Dutchman clear
shots Shane Lowry dropped with a double-bogey six on the final hole of his second round
JOOST LUITEN hit a stunning albatross to claim a one-shot lead after two rounds of the Andalucia Valderrama Masters. The Dutchman holed his second shot at the par-five 11th to wow the galleries and take a giant step towards the leaderboard summit, where he sits on six under par.
That moment turned the 31year-old’s round on its head, and wiped out three of the four bogeys he made en route to a one-under 70.
Luiten had finished second at last year’s Open de Espana at the same venue and reached the halfway stage a stroke ahead of tournament host Sergio Garcia, Englishman Robert Rock and Scott Jamieson of Scotland.
Shane Lowry was the big Irish mover, climbing 23 places to 16th place with a one-over par 71. Lowry was three under for the day, two under for the tournament, approaching the last but had to settle for an overall level par heading into the weekend after posting a double bogey six at the par-four 18th.
Pádraig Harrington finished the day on three-over but Gary Hurley failed to male the cut on. 11 over.
Conditions made scoring tougher than on day one, with Rock also one under for the day and Garcia shooting a level-par 71. Jamieson’s 68, containing five birdies and two bogeys, was therefore good enough to catapult him into the reckoning.
Welshman Jamie Donaldson went one better, signing for a best-of-day four under, though he was still four off the lead after a slow start on Thursday.
Andrew Johnson, who edged Luiten in the 2016 Open de Espana, joined Donaldson in a six-strong group on two under.
In Korea, pre-tournament favourite Justin Thomas remained in touch at the inaugural CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges, despite a two-over-par 74 in the second round.
The world No4 — the highest ranked player in the field on Jeju Island — started the day with a three-shot lead after a superb opening round of 63.
But he was unable to hit those heights on yesterday and finished two shots behind new leader Luke List. The US PGA champion dropped three shots on the front nine and only marginally improved after the turn, mixing three birdies with two bogeys.
Thomas’ slip allowed List to hit the front in the battle for the USD 1.6million first prize.
List shot a flawless round of 67 which featured five birdies to move to nine under in his bid for a first PGA Tour title.
Lucas Glover also enjoyed a five-under round to shoot up the leader board and sit one shot off the lead, alongside Scott Brown.
Marc Leishman and Patrick Reed, on six under, formed a dangerous chasing pack, with European Ryder Cup star Thomas Pieters one shot further back.
England’s Ian Poulter finished two under par after carding a second successive 71.
Meanwhile, a top Korean golf official resigned yesterday after a rules controversy at a domestic tournament saw penalties issued then rescinded, players threaten to withdraw, and all first-round scores at the KB Financial Star Championship scrubbed. The Korean Ladies Professional Golf Association (KLPGA) issued an apology over the incident and said it had arisen because it was difficult for players to distinguish between the green and the fringe at several holes on the Black Stone Golf Club in Ichon. Choi Hye-jin and Park Youna were hit with two-shot penalties following Thursday’s opening round after marking their ball and picking it up, believing they were on the putting surface when in fact they were just off the green. Choi had been the coleader on six-under-par before her penalty was assessed.
However, The KLPGA later discovered that four other players had committed the same offence.
The decision to backtrack on the penalties sparked an outcry from the rest of the field.
A players’ meeting went on until late on Thursday to discuss the issue, with some players threatening to quit if the penalties were wiped and others saying they would walk if they were enforced.
The governing KLPGA discussed the issue with players again early yesterday and eventually decided to scrub all the scores from the first round.
The KLPGA confirmed that leading rules official Choi Jin-ha had resigned over the matter with immediate effect.