David Law fired an eagle and three birdies over the final five holes on Friday to share the lead alongside Adrian Meronk and Rasmus Højgaard at the halfway stage of the 2023 Ras Al Khaimah Championship.
The Scot made three birdies on the front nine before catching fire towards the end of his round, as an eagle on the 14th and a hat-trick of birdies from the 15th rounded off a bogey-free 64 and took him into the weekend on 11 under par.
Poland’s Meronk had made seven birdies and no bogeys in the morning to set the early target before being joined at the summit at Al Hamra Golf Club.
Højgaard, meanwhile, briefly got to 12 under after making six birdies in his first 14 holes before a bogey on the 16th meant he had to settle for a share of the lead.
The 21-year-old Dane is aiming to emulate his twin Nicolai, who won this event last year, and in doing so make the Højgaards the first brothers to win the same tournament on the DP World Tour.
First-round leader Ryo Hisatsune produced a second-round 70 to sit in a four-way tie for fourth, one shot behind the trio at the top. Also on ten under were Wil Besseling and Englishmen Daniel Gavins and Dale Whitnell.
Player Quotes
David Law: “I played good stuff the first 12 holes and didn’t hole too much. The last six holes I putted really well, which made a big difference.
“Yesterday was a lot trickier but today it was a wind direction that I had never seen here, definitely a trickier wind. When you hit the par five 14, I hit a six iron in there, which makes a big difference, you’re not getting up in two. It’s very wind dependent this course and it was more favourable for the back nine certainly.
“I’m excited, it’s like a different golf course than we played the last twice we have been here. The fairways are so tight and firm, everyone is missing fairways. It plays into the hands of the bigger hitters a bit I would say, but at the same time there is still a bit of skill and control of the ball.
Adrian Meronk: “A lot of solid shots, great putts. It was quite calm in the morning so you could aim at the pins and go quite aggressive, which I did.
“I was down wind (on the fifth) so went for it and pulled the drive a bit, hit the cart path. I thought it was in the water but the ball stayed in the bush. I was just trying to smash it out, and the ball went through the bunker to 20 feet. Unfortunately I missed the putt but it was the shot of the day.
“Last year I started well and had a great year, you always want to get the season off to a nice start. I’m just focusing on my game, trying to go as low as possible every week. It’s a good position after the first couple of weeks.”
Rasmus Højgaard: “I didn’t drive the ball well, I put myself in the rough and the sand a lot. Managed to putt well today and saved some good pars.
“I haven’t worked on anything particular with my putting technique, but it’s one of the areas that I want to improve and it’s nice to see that some of the stuff I’ve done is paying off. Once you see a couple go in you get a good feeling.
“It would be pretty cool (to become the first brothers to win the same event) but there’s still a lot of golf to be played. It would be cool to make some history.”
