Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, January 10 - Evergreen Mardan Mamat produced another authoritative round to keep his lead in the Sabah Masters.
He carded a second round five-under-par 66 at Sutera Harbour Golf & Country Club to lead on nine-under.
Antonio Lascuna from the Philippines is three shots behind after firing 69, in the final event of the 2012-2013 season on the ASEAN PGA Tour.
A stroke further back is Malaysian Nicholas Fung and Somkiat Srisanga from Thailand, who carded rounds of 65 and 68 respectively.
Fung, whose hometown is Kota Kinabalu, currently leads the ASEAN PGA Tour Order of Merit and after his fine round, consisting of six birdies, he is on the cusp of securing top spot.
Mamat, aged 45, started the day in a tie for the lead with Lascuna, but took control of the event by making birdie on his first three holes.
The Singaporean number one started on the 10th and made another birdie on the 14th. He dropped shots on 15 and 18 but then toured the next nine in three under.
“I made an amazing start and that gave me a lot of confidence,” said Mamat.
“You need to keep your ball in the fairway off the tee here and that is one of the things I do well. It is hard to stop the ball on the greens so you need a good lie for approach shots.”
Mamat last played in the Sabah Masters in 1999 when it was also played at Sutera Harbour and American Robert Huxtable triumphed. The tournament was not played for a decade until being revived in 2011 by the ASEAN PGA and the Sabah Tourism Board.
Last year Mamat showed he is getting better with age by winning the Philippine Open.
“I am a veteran not a senior yet. The key for me these days is to enjoy playing. I don’t hit it as far as the young guys but there is a lot more to the game than that,” added Mamat.
Mamat has won twice before on the ASEAN PGA Tour in the 2009 Mercedes-Benz Masters Singapore and in the following year’s Mercedes-Benz Masters Malaysia.
Lascuna, a perennial runner-up on the ASEAN PGA Tour, made three birdies and dropped one shot.
“I played well and am quite happy but Mardan will be hard to catch,” said 42-year-old Lascuna.
The Filipino has won 18 titles on the Philippine Golf Tour and in 2007 he was victorious in the Selangor Masters.
Malaysian amateur star Arie Fauzi is putting together an impressive tournament. The 22-year-old, who is on a golf scholarship at the University of Tulsa, fired a 68 and is in solo possession of seventh place on one under.
“It was a little bit windy but I am used to that as we have plenty in Tulsa,” said Fauzi.
He plans to play in this year’s Maybank Malaysian Open as an amateur before deciding if the time is right to turn professional.
Fauzi first surfaced on the ASEAN PGA Tour when he tied for eighth in the 2009 Mercedes-Benz Masters Malaysia.
Thailand’s Annop Tangkamolprasert is even par for the tournament following a 72. He is third on the Merit list and needs to win this week, and see Fung finish outside the top-10, to top the money list.
Wisut Artjanawat from Thailand, who shot 69, and Malaysia’s top golfer Danny Chia, in with a 73, are tied with Annop.
The Indonesians meanwhile are off to a slow start. Rory Hie shot 4 birdies today, but 2 double bogeys and 2 bogeys meant he ended the day at 2 over 73. After an even par round yesterday he's now in a share of 17th with 144 total. George Gandranata shot 72 for the day, totaling 146 at the midpoint for a share of 28th place.
Leading second round scores (Par 71):
133 - Mardan Mamat (SIN) 67 66
136 - Antonio Lascuna (PHI) 67 69
137 - Somkiat Srisanga (THA) 69 68, Nicholas Fung (MAS) 72 65
139 - S Sivachandran (MAS) 71 68
140 - Rufino Bayron (PHI) 70 70
141 - Arie Fauzi (Am) (MAS) 73 68
142 - Pasavee Lertvilai (THA) 71 71, Marvin Dumandan (PHI) 70 72, Annop Tangkamolprasert (THA) 70 72, Danny Chia (MAS) 69 73, Wisut Artjanawat (THA) 73 69, Anthony Fernando (PHI) 72 70
143 - Jhonnel Ababa (PHI) 72 71, R Nachimuthu (MAS) 72 71, Pijit Petchkasem (THA) 71 72
144 - Iain Steel (MAS) 70 74. Pavit Tangkamolprasert (THA) 73 71, Rory Hie (INA) 71 73, Mohd Sukree Othman (MAS) 72 72, Jay Bayron (PHI) 73 71, Yu Shuen Lam (MAS) 72 72, Rattanon Wannasrichan (THA) 69 75
Selected:
146 - George Gandranata (INA) 74 72
Missed cut:
163 - Imay Hendra (INA) 80 83
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