Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher flashed smiles on the second day of the Dubai World Championship, when the duo surged into the lead after scoring nine-under-par. Meanwhile, World No. 1 Lee Westwood followed the duo
for the third place and Martin Kaymer once again took an edge on Graeme Mc Dowell.
The second round took the entire field by surprise. Like Robert Karlsson, Ross Fisher was not expected at the top, especially when Kaymer seemed bewildered for a victory. Fisher was amused at his speculating 64,
which he carved in the midst of the tournament. The winner of 3 Irish Opens teed off from the front and without much hindrance smashed two successive birdies on the opening holes. He chased his start with two more points and wrapped the half with four-under.
On his way to the back nine, the 30-year-old smirked at the crowd and within a few minutes, he stood across the course with four more birdies and an aggregate of nine-under.
On the other hand, his compatriot held a brand new, white driver in his hands. The Englishman teed off from the back and did not look promising until the first hole of the front nine. Poulter fired four consecutive
birdies in the four opening holes. He picked six points without dropping a shot at the Jumeirah Golf Estate. The veteran is fifth in the ‘Race to Dubai’ rankings and is eyeing his second victory on the European tour.
The real combat started on the 16th hole, when Kaymer’s scorecard showed two-under after dropping two shots. Poulter was five-under when both the men proceeded towards the 16th tee. Kaymer
took a tee shot and the ball landed short of the fairway. The US PGA winner aimed the third shot for an eagle, but the ball rolled away from the pin and Kaymer had to settle for a par. On the other hand, Poulter swung his white driver and shot the ball at
a distance of 235 meters. The ball landed in the centre of the fairway. He took the second shot and the ball plunged into the sand bunkers and flew uphill, but rolled back on the rough at the left. Poulter matched the score as that of Kaymer and carved a par
on the hole.
On the par-3 17th, Kaymer once again failed to pick a point, but the champion from Hong Kong did not miss the opportunity and conquered the trickiest hole of the course. He walked the 17th
green with a birdie and marched towards the clubhouse as a leader.
On his way Poulter told the press, "I kept losing shots to the left - I think the head is about to go. I brought a spare, so I am going to do a bit of testing on the range. If you hit them hard they tend not to last too long."
Poulter feared Lee Westwood, as he was the one man who stole his limelight in 2009 at the same venue. However, this time the defending champion dropped two shots and released Poulter out of his misery. Westwood
five birdied the front, dropped a shot, picked two more points, but missed one more shot and settled at a 67.
The most feared Westwood won the bonus offered with the prize money to the winner in 2009 and after one year took the throne of World No.1. If Poulter manages his second victory, he will automatically rise to the
top of the world rankings.
This is it for the second round of the Dubai World Championship, which took place at the Earth Golf Club at the Jumeirah Golf Estate in Dubai. The championship has entered the weekend with Fisher and Ross in the
lead, but the leader board is predicted to change once again. The veteran, who will take a lead in the third round, will fall in the top three by the end of Sunday.
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