US Open champion Lucas Glover tightened his grip on the SBS Championship on Friday when three birdies in the last six holes put him three strokes clear after the second round.
On another surprisingly benign day on the spectacular Maui coastline, Glover fired a sizzling eight-under-par 65 to maintain a red-hot pace in the PGA Tour’s season-opening event.
After eagling the par-five ninth to reach the turn in four-under 32, the long-hitting American picked up further shots at the 10th, 13th, 14th and 16th for a 15-under total of 131.
Glover ended up just two shy of matching the tournament record for the first 36 holes, South African Ernie Els having set an aggregate of 17-under 129 on his way to victory in 2003.
“It was good,” a smiling Glover told reporters after recording seven birdies, a bogey and an eagle.
Fellow American John Rollins, helped by a monster eagle putt from 55 feet at the 15th, carded a 66 to lie second, one ahead of compatriots Sean O’Hair (67) and Matt Kuchar (68), Australian Geoff Ogilvy (66) and Britain’s Martin Laird (68).
Masters champion Angel Cabrera of Argentina was a further shot back at 10 under after returning a six-birdie 68.
The Kapalua Resort’s picturesque Plantation Course was vulnerable to low scoring with only gentle breezes caressing the hilly layout and 27 players in the 28-strong field shot below par.
The sole exception was PGA champion Yang Yong-eun of South Korea, who was two under for the day before he ran up an ugly triple-bogey eight at the last for a 74.
■AFRICA OPEN
AFP, EAST LONDON, SOUTH AFRICA
Johannesburg golfer Trevor Fisher almost overslept before taking sole ownership of the Africa Open lead with a second-round 66 on Friday.
The 1.95m Fisher stands on 132 at the links-cum-parkland East London Golf Club and confessed he did not sleep well in the eastern Cape coastal city and came close to being late for his tee-off time.
He is one stroke ahead of Swede Patrick Sjoland, who fired a 67 on the par-73 layout, and two in front of compatriots Thomas Aiken and Keith Horne, who returned a 67 each.
Fisher and Sjoland were among five first-round leaders and the other three slipped back as the chase hotted up for first prize in the 1 million euro (US$1.4 million) event co-sanctioned by the South African and European tours.
South African Richard Sterne (71) is five shots behind Fisher, compatriot Titch Moore (72) six behind, and Dane Mark Haastrup stumbled to a 75 and is 11 strokes off the pace.
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