Dubai, United Arab Emirates: Harry Takis produced a brilliant late birdie barrage to claim a share of the lead at the half-way stage of the 16th Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC).
Playing in the penultimate flight of the day, the top-ranked Australian made birdies at four of the final six holes on the Emirates Golf Club’s Majlis Course as he signed for a bogey-free 66.
That gave him a 36-hole aggregate of 11-under 133, drawing him level at the top of the leaderboard with Japan’s Rintaro Nakano and Vietnam’s Le Khanh Hung.
After another sweltering day at the fabled Dubai venue, Japan’s Taisei Nagasaki is one stroke off the pace in fourth following a second successive 67 with Thai Fifa Laopakdee alone in fifth on 135.
Takis, runaway winner of this year’s Singapore Amateur Open, made eight pars in a solid opening nine of one-under 34 before moving up a gear on the inward half with birdies at 10, 13, 14, 15 and 17. He narrowly missed a birdie putt on 18 that would have given him the outright lead.
He said: “I stayed patient on the front nine and rattled off a few in a row there on the back, which was nice. I think the back nine is more scorable than the front. I said that to my caddie when we made the turn. We were only one‑under, and I said I thought we could rattle off a few if we stay calm and stay in the present.
“You have to be patient on the front side, hit it to 15, 20 feet all day, hole a few, and then back nine you can really tear it up if you get hot.”
Nakano, third in last year’s AAC in his home country, also posted a day two 66, highlighted by an eagle-three at 13th for the second day in succession and birdies at 17 and 18.
He said: “I didn’t play well on the front nine and started to feel a bit uneasy. But I made the eagle on 13 again to get my confidence back. I’m happy to be in this position.”
Khanh Hung, joint first-round leader with Fifa and Australian Billy Dowling, maintained his bid to become the first Vietnamese winner of the AAC, adding a 67 to his day one 66. Today he raced out of the starting blocks with birdies at the first three holes. He turned in four-under 31 but was slowed by two bogeys on the back nine.
The 17-year-old who was part of the national team which won the Asia-Pacific Amateur Team Championship for the Nomura Cup on home soil last year, said: “It was tough today. The greens got really firm in the afternoon, I’m just happy that I fought for every shot. It’s a good round for me today.
“I’m grateful to be here and I’m just really appreciating the journey and the experience for this AAC in Dubai. I just want to enjoy every moment.”
The cut for the leading 60 players and ties fell at six-over 150 with the United Arab Emirates trio of Ahmad Skaik (140), Sam Mullane (143) and Rayan Ahmed (147) all making it through.
Geoffrey Laklak created a slice of history when he became the first golfer from Lebanon to make the cut in the AAC. Laklak added a 71 to his opening 73 to comfortably make it through to the weekend in a share of 23rd place.
Laklak, who is based in Miami, Florida, with his family, said: “This means the world to me. Lebanon has always done so much for me and my family, especially giving us amazing opportunities to play in these amazing events. It feels good to finally repay for all they have done for us. It’s a signal of hope, hopefully for the country, and for me, to show that I’m starting to compete a little bit better and put my name on the leaderboard.”
Other Middle East players to progress are Jordan’s Salem Alabdallat (142) and Qatar’s Ali Al Shahrani (146).
Leading Scores
133 – Harry Takis (Australia) 67-66; Rintaro Nakano (Japan) 67-66; Le Khanh Hung (Vietnam) 66-67
134 – Taisei Nagasaki (Japan) 67-67
135 – Fifa Laopakdee (Thailand) 66-69
137 – Cooper Moore (New Zealand) 69-68
138 – An Seong-hyeon (Korea) 69-69; Billy Dowling (Australia) 66-72
139 – Chang Xihuan (China) 69-70
140 – Kanichiro Katano (Japan) 72-68; Ratchanon ‘TK’ Chanatananuwat (Thailand) 70-70; Ahmad Skaik (UAE) 68-72
Selected Scores
142 – Thanawin Lee (Thailand) 73-69; Zhou Ziqin (China) 72-70
143 – Sam Mullane (UAE) 67-76
