SCOTS HAVE A MAGICAL DAY
Tartan trio of Richie, Connor & Calum shine
SCOTS stars Richie Ramsay, Connor Syme and Calum Hill had their rivals under their spell on day two of the Magical Kenya Open in Nairobi.
Ramsay started his round by chipping-in for an eagle two on his way to a 65 to tie with Syme.
He birdied three of his closing four holes in a 67 as the pair share third with South African Dean Burmester (64) on 10-under par.
Hill, with a 68, is just a shot further back among four players on nine-under par on the Karen Country Club course.
Big-hitting Aussie Scott Hend and Finland’s Kalle Samooja head the field at 11-under par.
Ramsay had five-year-old daughter Olivia cheering him on back home in Edinburgh as he followed his eagle with two birdies in a flying start.
He said: “To start with an eagle is a great feelgood factor. I hit a lovely sand-wedge and it spun back into the hole. Then to birdie the next two, you feel like there’s a low one coming.
“I reeled off a few nice pars and continued it on the front nine.
“The best thing about it was my daughter wanted an eagle or a hole-in-one, so I know when she’ll see the scorecard and sees the eagle she’ll be delighted.”
Syme capped his round with three birdies over his closing four holes, including a near impossible one from a greenside bunker at his last hole.
He said: “I had a difficult lie in the bunker on my 18th and couldn’t get myself set as the ball was well up the right side. I thought I was going to have to put one foot out and one foot in but as I got over it, I felt I could hit it.
“My big problem was keeping my balance because I felt my left foot could have easily slipped.
“I was just happy to make decent contact and to see it roll up nicely there was a little bonus.”
Nairobi sits at almost 5,900 feet but Syme likened the course to one very close to sea level and just a 20-minute drive from his Drumoig home. He said: “This
Karen course reminds me so much of Ladybank and also Downfield but obviously minus the sun!”
Hill birdied four of his outward nine then dropped shots at his 10th and 12th holes but like Syme he also birdied the last.
Craigielaw’s Grant Forrest signed for a 66 to be three-under par. But missing the cut and spoiling his 46th birthday was David Drysdale (70) who along with David Law (70) was at level par. Also missing the cut at oneover were Liam Johnston (71) and Ewen Ferguson (73).