South Africa's James Kingston shot a 3-under 69 in windy conditions Friday to take a one-stroke lead over countryman Andrew McLardy and Wales' Kyron Sullivan after the second round of the South African Open.
Kingston, bothered by a strained neck, had a 2-under 142 total on the Jack Nicklaus-designed Pearl Valley Golf Estates course. McLardy and Sullivan shot 71s.
"The ball was oscillating on the greens, and you spend so much energy trying to stand still that it's tough to make a decent stroke, especially on the putts that require a deft touch," Kingston said.
Greg Norman followed his opening 75 with a 70 to move into a tie for sixth at 1 over. The 52-year-old Norman teamed with Bubba Watson last week to finish second in the Merrill Lynch Shootout after ending a long layoff the week before with a sixth-place tie with son Gregory in the Father-Son Challenge.
"Two weeks ago, I played a father-son tournament on the Champions Tour and I started practicing two weeks before that," said Norman, who eagled the par-5 13th. "Prior to that, if I'd played eight to 10 rounds of golf since March I'd be surprised."
The Australian star also was engaged to former tennis star Chris Evert on Sunday.
Defending champion Ernie Els was 3 over. He shot a 70 after opening with a 77. Els, who blew a two-stroke lead with a triple bogey on the final hole of the Alfred Dunhill Championship last week at Leopard Creek, opened with consecutive bogeys.
"A nightmare start, but I stuck with it and tried to make the best out of the day," the South African star said. "But after that start, I could easily have walked off the course with a bad back."
The difficulty of putting in the gusting conditions bothered Kingston on the first two holes. He missed a 5-footer for birdie on the first, then three-putted the second from 18 feet for a bogey. But he eagled the par-5 third, ran off 10 straight pars and got to 2 under with birdies on Nos. 14 and 16.
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