2013 European Tour Golf: Luke Guthrie Leads BMW Masters By 4 at the Halfway Point
By Les Bailey
In somewhat better conditions in Shanghai, 23 year-old American, Luke Guthrie extended his lead at the BMW Masters to four shots at the halfway point in Shanghai on Friday. The BMW Masters presented by SRE Group is the first in a series of four tournaments to identify the European Tour’s Race To Dubai champion. Guthrie couldn’t find the magic he had on Thursday when he shot a 65, but his one under par 71 on Friday added one stroke to his lead.
On a day when it seemed that no one could shoot a low score, England’s Simon Dyson got within one shot but Guthrie followed with a birdie, and Dyson double bogeyed the 18th hole giving Guthrie the four-shot advantage when they tee it up on Saturday. He had a five-shot lead until he also bogeyed the last hole.
"“It was another difficult day out there,” said Guthrie. “Anything in the red was another good number and I was able to manage one under.“I made a few more mistakes out there, made a few bogeys, which was a little disappointing. It’s never fun to bogey the last hole, but it’s playing tough.“I hit a lot of good shots, a lot of things to build on. I made two great swings on 17 and 18 with irons to finish, and build on that going into tomorrow."
Americans, John Daly, and Peter Uihlein, who were hanging around the leaderboard on Thursday both had big troubles on Friday. Daly fired a two over par 74 to drop into a tie for ninth place with Gonzalo FDEZ-Costano, and Australian Brett Rumford while Uihlein ballooned to a 75. The young American, who is a regular on the European Tour had a terrible day. He is tied for 12th place with a one under par total.
Race To Dubai points leader, Henrik Stenson struggled again on Friday, shooting a two over par 74 to end the day with a two over par total. He is tied with a group who are tied for 28th place that include former PGA Champion, Martin Kaymer, and President’s Cup rookie, Richard Sterne from South Africa.
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