Song Yong-han’s closing eagle on the last hole soared him to the top of the leaderboard as the South Korean signed for a flawless seven-under-par 65 to hold a one-shot lead over Taisei Shimizu after the second round of the Casio World Open on Friday.
Related: Riki Kawamoto takes early advantage at Casio World Open
Hiroshi Iwata returned with a 67 to head into the weekend two shots back of Song in outright third place while Ryo Ishikawa (69), Riki Kawamoto (70) and Taisei Yamada (67) are tied for fourth with 10-under-par 134 total.
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Song entered the second round two shots behind Kawamoto, who held the overnight lead at the Kochi Kuroshiro Country Club. The 33-year-old birdied his first hole to get off to an encouraging start.
Song, seeking his third JGTO title this week, parred his next two holes before picking up another gain on the fourth hole.
After five straight pars, the South Korean braved the gusty conditions by birdieing three of his next six holes after the turn before an eagle-three on 18 lifted him to the top.
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“The wind was strong from the morning, so I initially thought I should just play it safe. But since my shots were good, I managed to place the ball well, and my putting was accurate.
“I’m very happy that it translated into a good score. There are still 36 holes left, so I’ll continue to focus on my game and do my best to play well,” said Song.
Meanwhile, Shimizu will be hoping to overcome the challenging pin positions when he returns to the tee and resume his title charge for his JGTO breakthrough.
“The pin positions are tough, especially on the short holes. They were so challenging that it felt like a struggle just to make par. I hope to do better tomorrow,” said Shimizu.
