Ernie Els retains halfway lead at BMW International Open – Golf news
South African veteran star Ernie Els kept hold on to his lead, midway through the BMW International Open, after he carded a three-under par 69 in the second round, on Friday, June 21, 2013.
The BMW International Open is the only tournament on the European Tour roster to be held in Germany, and is being staged at the prestigious Golfclub München Eichenried.
Els, who fired an emphatic nine-under par 63 on day one to mark a stunning start to his campaign in Munich, kept the momentum going and recorded another six birdies on day two to maintain a one-stroke lead over Mathew Baldwin and Alexander Levy.
The reigning Open champion got off to a slow start, as he parred each of the first five holes, before recording a birdie and a double bogey on the sixth and the seventh hole, respectively. He added a shot on his scorecard on the ninth hole to reach the turn
in 36.
He then picked up pace and recorded four birdies against just a lone bogey, to end the back nine with a 33 on his scorecard.
He now believes that he will have to play even better, especially when the course is expected to play tougher on the weekend.
“I’m in a nice position obviously,” he said. “I think it's going to play a little tougher over the weekend. It's getting a little bit firmer but I would like to swing a little better tomorrow, but I'm in a really nice position.”
“I didn't play as good today as I did yesterday obviously. I fought hard for a score today and satisfied with that. There is so much golf to be played. If you fall out of the lead, if you're not leading after three rounds, it doesn't really mean much at
all late Sunday,” he added.
Baldwin, in the meantime, played amazingly well on day two, as he drained four birdies against a lone bogey, which allowed him to accumulate an 11-under par two-round score. He now plans to keep the momentum going into the remaining two rounds, in a bid
to mount a title charge on Sunday.
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