South Africa’s Jbe Kruger finally found some form as he hit a brilliant seven-under-par 65 in windy conditions to share a three-way lead with Taiwan’s Hung Chien-yao and Lee Chieh-po at the Manila Masters yesterday.
Lee carded an eagle and five birdies for six-under 66 at par-72 Manila Southwoods Golf and Country Club, while Hung’s blemish-free 67 included a 15-yard chip-in on the par-three third.
Fellow Taiwanese Lu Wen-teh and Lu Wei-chih carded a 72 and 71 respectively for one-under.
Photo: AFP
Kruger, down to 500th in the world rankings after only one top-10 finish all year, produced the second round’s lowest score to be tied with Hung and Lee.
“It’s fun to finally make some putts. I’m happy. I think I like to play in the wind. I’ve always liked it. Just need to get the putter going a bit more,” the 29-year-old said. “I didn’t do anything different with my putting. I wasn’t hitting it to the hole, lagging a bit. So I was just trying to hit it a bit harder. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in contention. I’ve been hitting it well and I just need to make a few more putts.”
Overnight leader Nicholas Fung was a shot further back in tied fourth, alongside Philippines local hero Rufino Bayron.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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