Inicio News McKibbin holds clubhouse lead as weather delays play in Singapore

McKibbin holds clubhouse lead as weather delays play in Singapore

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Tom McKibbin of Northern Ireland hits a tee-off during round two of the DP World Tour Singapore Classic golf tournament in Singapore on February 10, 2023. (Photo by ROSLAN RAHMAN / AFP) (Photo by ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Tom McKibbin of Northern Ireland hits a tee-off during round two of the DP World Tour Singapore Classic golf tournament in Singapore on February 10, 2023. (Photo by ROSLAN RAHMAN / AFP) (Photo by ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Tom McKibbin holds the clubhouse lead at the Singapore Classic as the second round was suspended due to fading light following an earlier rain delay.

The Northern Irishman backed up his first round 64 with a three under par 69 to lead in the clubhouse on 11 under par. McKibbin made the turn four under par after birdies on the third, fifth, sixth and eighth holes, and then recovered from two bogeys with his fifth gain of the day at the 14th.

Play was suspended for just under an hour in the afternoon due to flooding on the course after heavy rain. Resuming at 18:20, McKibbin made par on his final hole to set a target of 11 under.

Among those still to finish their second round after play was suspended for the day at 19:17 due to fading light is reigning U.S. Junior Amateur Champion Ding Wenyi of China, who is also on 11 under par with four holes left to complete on Saturday morning.

Ding made history last year as the first male Chinese winner of a USGA event and the 18-year-old is currently five under par for his second round through 14 holes, with two birdies and two eagles on his scorecard.

The youngster is seeking to become just the fourth amateur winner of a DP World Tour event and the first since Shane Lowry triumphed at the Irish Open in 2009.

In a share of second place are Germany’s Marcel Schneider and 2016 Ryder Cup player Andy Sullivan on ten under par. Eight players currently share fifth place on nine under, with last year’s Challenge Tour Number One Nathan Kimsey among those who finished their rounds.

There are 13 groups who will return to the course at 08:20 to finish their second rounds, with the third round not starting before 10:20.

Player Quotes

Tom McKibbin: “I played very nicely most of the day, especially the front nine. A little bit colder on the back, overall a pretty good day. I just hoped we would finish it off. I didn’t fancy coming back early in the morning to hit three shots, very happy we managed it.

“It’s very tricky (club selection), especially some of the in to the wind shots, if you’re on an upslope you don’t really know how much the wind is going to hurt it. It’s a guess, which is hard. Especially if you hit it too high into the wind and it grabs it, you can hit a slope and a decent shot could land 20 feet away and up going 40 or 50 feet away. It’s definitely challenging.

“I’m looking forward to it. Hopefully go out and play some of my own golf, concentrate well and see how it goes.”

Marcel Schneider: “It wasn’t too different to yesterday. The course played soft, the greens have been soft – a bit more spin on the greens somehow, it played nicely.

“The heat is the same, it’s a bit more humid out there which I’m not a big fan of. I’ve managed it quite well so far and I’m looking forward to the weekend.

“It’s quite simple, continue the way I’ve played the last two days and stick to the plan.”

Andy Sullivan: “I made a lot of birdies yesterday, seven birdies, and a few mistakes out there. Today I cut those mistakes out and made a lot of birdies. It’s been a theme since I changed to Titleist, the putter has been really good at the start of the year. I just have to get my long game in some sort of shape, but it’s been good the last three out of four weeks. I’m feeling really good and felt like there was a low score in there somewhere.

“I just felt little bit more comfortable off the tee, got it in the fairway a lot more yesterday afternoon which opened up a lot of chances. Today I got it in the fairway a lot too, it’s a great golf course in the sense that the pins are tricky; if you play away from them you can easily three-putt, some holes you have to be aggressive on to make birdies. It tests your all-round game and you’ve got to think about it a bit more.”

Scores after round two