Peter Whiteford has gained a two-shot lead going into the championship rounds of the Avantha Masters after following his opening 66 with a second round 68, in search of his maiden European Tour title.
He shared the overnight lead with Spaniard Alejandro Cañizares, but Whiteford moved ahead of Cañizares and the rest of the field thanks to six birdies and an eagle in his second round, his lead would have been a lot bigger but three bogeys meant he finished the second round 10-under par.
“I had a sticky patch at the start – it was freezing cold this morning and it's a lot harder,” said Whiteford.
“But once it warmed up a bit I started to play a bit better and gave myself a few chances. I had a good eagle on the sixth which kick-started me a bit to finish well. I hit driver and a six iron and then holed a good putt, about 30 feet across the slope.
The 31 year old leads by two from Thailand’s Prom Meesawat.
France’s Jean-Baptiste Gonnet compiled a 69 to sit third on 7-under, one ahead of compatriot Gregory Havret, Wales’ Jamie Donaldson, Ryder Cup Dane Søren Hansen, Australian Marcus Fraser and Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee.
Cañizares posted three bogeys on the back nine in a one over 73 to slip to five under, along with leading South African Jbe Kruger, Jamie Moul, 2010 winner Andrew Dodt and Marc Warren.
South African performance
Richard Sterne is having a solid tournament and sits seven shots behind the leader and two behind the best-placed South African Kruger.
Peter Karmis shot a 2-under 70 to lift himself off the bottom of the leaderboard, but it wasn’t nearly enough to help him make the cut.
| Pos | Player | Round | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter Whiteford | 68 | -10 |
| 2 | Prom Meesawat | 64 | -8 |
| 3 | Jean-Baptiste Gonnet | 69 | -7 |
| 3 | Chapchai Nirat | 67 | -7 |
| 3 | Kiradech Aphibarnrat | 69 | -7 |
| 3 | Kieran Pratt | 66 | -7 |
| 7 | Soren Hansen | 68 | -6 |
| 7 | Thongchai Jaidee | 70 | -6 |
| 7 | Jamie Donaldson | 70 | -6 |
| 7 | Gregory Havret | 70 | -6 |
