Zhang Lian-Wei remains in contention at the UBS Hong Kong Open
China’s Zhang Lian-Wei remained in contention at the UBS Hong Kong Open, following his score of a four-under par 66 in Friday’s second round, to take the share of the second spot on the leaderboard.
The prestigious Asian Tour and the European Tour sanctioned event is being played at the Hong Kong Golf Club.
Zhang, who became the first Chinese player to record a victory on the European Tour after winning the 2003 Caltex Masters, maintained his form in the tournament to keep alive the locals’ hopes.
He got off to a slow start, as he conceded a bogey on the first hole that he played. However, he did not allow his bad start to overhaul his confidence and added shots on the third, fourth and the seventh hole to reach the turn in two-under.
The back nine of the course also witnessed him play some good shots. As a result, he added another two birdies to his scorecard on the 13th and the 16th hole.
He could have been the co-leader, at the end of the day, if he had not missed a birdie opportunity on the 18th hole.
At the end of the day, he found himself settled for an eight-under par overall score, one stroke behind the leader Michael Campbell.
“It was a heart-stopping moment for me too,” said Zhang. “But overall, I’m happy with the way I played. I’ve been very consistent and the results are showing. I’ve known Campbell for a long time and I look forward to playing together with him”.
He now plans to keep the momentum going into the last two rounds, in a bid to add the sixth Asian Tour title to his resume.
“As a Chinese, winning the UBS HK Open will be a significant milestone for my career as that would mean capturing the three National Opens of each country. I want that,” said Zhang.
Miguel Angel Jimenez and Fredrik Andersson Hed were the other two players who matched Zhang’s two-round score to take the share of the second position.
The overnight leader Javier Colomo, in the meantime, faltered for a one-over par 71. Entering the weekend, he was tied for the sixth place on the leaderboard.
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