Matthew Southgate will take a one-stroke lead into the weekend of the Nexo Championship after carding a two under 70 on a testing second day at Trump International Golf Links.
Related: Kinhult holds two-shot lead after opening day
The Englishman, who began Friday three shots off the pace, managed the windy conditions best in Aberdeenshire, reaching four under par to move to the top of the leaderboard after 36 holes.
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The 37-year-old, opening his round on the tenth tee, played his first seven holes to even par before a birdie at the par four 17th marked a nice reward. He continued his consistency around the turn, registering a further six pars, with his only blemish of the day coming at the sixth.
A chip-in eagle on the next hole made for the perfect response; a feat which saw him jump to the top and take the outright lead from compatriot Matthew Jordan, South African Shaun Norris, Scotsman Scott Jamieson and Sweden’s Marcus Kinhult.
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Jordan came out firing on Friday, registering three birdies and an eagle across his opening four holes. The 30-year-old, who finished runner-up last week in Denmark, mixed another two gains with three bogeys to post a 69, which saw him settle for a share of second.
Norris was the best of the morning groups, also carding a three under 69 thanks to five birdies and a pair of bogeys. Home hope Jamieson finished with a 71 while first-round leader Kinhult managed a 74 to round out those sitting a shot back.
English amateur Eliot Baker was in a group of six at two under par, alongside Spaniard Quim Vidal, Zimbabwe’s Benjamin Follett-Smith, Japan’s Keita Nakajima, Dane Jacob Skov Olesen and Italy’s Matteo Manassero.
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Scottish duo Connor Syme and Martin Laird were the only players to be bogey free on Friday, while India’s Shubhankar Sharma produced the shot of the day with an ace on the sixth hole.
