2007 Philippine Open - Round 2: Liang holds onto lead at halfway

Liang, who has been enjoying good form the past two weeks, has taken another step closer to securing his first ever Asian Tour title when he scored eight birdies against three bogeys and a double bogey at the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club. After a two-day total of seven-under-par 137, the Chinese ace held on to a narrow one stroke lead over Australian rookie Neven Basic who carded a consistent round of 67 in lone second spot.

Filipino Benjie Magada blasted a 68 for third place two strokes behind the leader while local hero Frankie Minoza climbed up the leaderboard after a strong 67 in joint fourth place. Australia’s Jarrod Moseley shot a 71 also in tied fourth spot together with American Jason Knutzon who was even-par for the day three strokes off the pace.

“I’ve just been focused at my game and nothing else so I am glad to be leading again,” said Liang, who was ranked 16th on the Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit last year.

“I am not going to allow the pressure get to me so I’ll not think of winning or anything like that just yet. My plan has been working so far and I will remain as calm and relaxed when I tee off on Saturday,” he added.

Starting on the back nine, Liang enjoyed two straight birdies on the 10th and 11th holes but a wayward shot of the tee led to a double bogey at the 12th hole. Liang remained unfazed as he replied with four consecutive birdies on the 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th holes before a dropped shot on the 18th.

“I did not think of the double bogey at the 12th hole. I never allowed that stumble to affect my performance and it worked out well for me because I struck four birdies in a row,” said Liang, who is China’s top golfer. He closed in with two birdies against an equal number of bogeys on the front nine.

It was a solid second round performance for rookie Basic who blasted seven birdies against two dropped shots as he trails the Chinese talent by a single stroke in his first ever event on the Asian Tour.

“I played well and the ball was rolling very nicely for me today, so I’m delighted to be in this position,” said Basic.

“The greens are in fantastic shape. The plan here is to keep it in play of the tee. I normally strike it quite straight and that is what I’ve been doing here so I hope to keep it up.

“The golf course is great. It is my first time to the Philippines and I’ve been having a fantastic time on and off the course,” added Basic, who picked up the game at the age of 10 in Sydney. He played on the Australasian Tour the past two years before earning his full playing rights on the Asian Tour through Qualifying School last December.

With six birdies against two bogeys, Magada, 40, was the highest ranked local player in lone third spot.

“My target was to score even-par today so luckily I shot more than what I wanted. My putting was really great and I hope to be lucky again tomorrow,” said Magada, who turned pro in 1992. He had previously won seven titles on the domestic circuit.

Minoza, who is a multiple winner in Japan, shot three birdies against three dropped bogeys in the first nine holes. But the Filipino talent blazed the back nine when he nailed five straight birdies on the 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 16th holes.

“I got kind of lucky on the back nine with four birdies in a row. My putting was really good today. I hope to sustain this good game right through to Sunday,” said Minoza.

Overnight leader Knutzon was pleased with his round despite having slid down three positions to joint fourth place.

“There is still a lot left to play tomorrow. I struck three birdies against three bogeys and hung in there. I’m only three strokes behind so we shall see what happens in the third round,” said Knutzon, who won the 2004 Macau Open.

The Philippine Open is the third leg on this year’s Asian Tour schedule which offers no fewer than 29 events and a record high of US$26.5 million in total prize money.

Leading second round scores (par 72)

137 - Liang Wen-chong (CHN) 68-69

138 - Neven Basic (AUS) 71-67

139 - Benjie Magada (PHI) 71-68

140 - Jarrod Moseley (AUS) 69-71, Frankie Minoza (PHI) 73-67, Jason Knutzon (USA) 68-72

141 - Clay Devers (USA) 71-70, Rick Gibson (CAN) 71-70, Digvijay Singh (IND) 69-72, Adam Blyth (AUS) 74-67

142 - Han Lee (KOR) 70-72, Anthony Kang (USA) 68-74, Lu Wei-chih (TPE) 71-71, David Bransdon (AUS) 69-73, Jay Bayron [A] (PHI) 68-74

143 - Cookie Lao (PHI) 73-70, Sung Mao-chang (TPE) 71-72, Rowan Beste (AUS) 72-71, Wang Ter-chang (TPE) 68-75, Antonio Asistio Ii [A] (PHI) 75-68, Gerald Rosales (PHI) 73-70, Carito Villaroman (PHI) 68-75, Kim Hye-dong (KOR) 73-70, Artemio Murakami (PHI) 71-72, Prayad Marksaeng (THA) 69-74, Park Jun-won (KOR) 69-74

February 2, 2007

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