Jazz Janewattananond took advantage of the benign early morning conditions to haul himself back into contention going into the final round of the MENA Tour’s MahaSamutr Masters at Banyan Golf Club on Wednesday.
The talented Thai backed his opening 70 with a bogey-free four-under 68 to join overnight joint leader Lionel Weber in a two-way tie for the lead at six-under 138, one clear of England’s Jordan Garnish, who returned a second-round 71.
The Thai duo of Suradit Yongcharoenchai and Ratchapol Jantavara were tied for fourth a further shot adrfit as Varanyu Rattanaphaibulkij, also of Thailand, and
England’s Zane Scotland, who shared the overnight lead with France’s Weber, slipped to tied eighth after carding matching scores of 75.
Jazz Janewattananond tied in the lead at Banyon Tree.
“I had a pretty solid round today. I started early in the morning and that helped. It got a bit windy on Tuesday afternoon, but this morning we had a bit of an advantage as it was very still out there,” said Janewattananond.
“I did well on the back nine, scoring three of my four birdies. I love the idea of using range finders and golf buggies on the MENA Tour. I think I just need to get my rhythm going as there are a lot of good golfers on the leaderboard,” he added.
France’s Weber, who is also a Banyan Golf Club ambassador, made three birdies against two bogeys en route to a second-round 71 to hold on to his overnight lead as Wolmer Murillo of Venezuela, who finished second here last year, kept his hopes alive, moving into a tie for sixth on three after a second round 71.
Dubai-based Tiago Lobo of Brazil matched the day’s best of a 68 to sit atop the amateur division along with India’s Rayhan Thomas on one-under, six ahead of Victoria Tip-Aucha, the first female to play in a MENA Tour event, who signed for a 76.
An eagle on the par-5, third highlighted the round of Lobo while Thomas, who was two under for the day through 14, dropped three shots, including a double bogey on the par-3, 17th, to settle for a 73.
Elsewhere, England Andrew Marshall carded back-to- back 73s that left him tied for 32nd in an 11-man group which included Craig Hinton, the winner of the MENA Tour’s Order of Merit title last year.
The cut was made at four-over 148 with 44 professionals and 10 amateurs making it to the final round.
Craig Kieswetter may have missed the cut by two shots, but the former England cricketer provided the highlight of the day, acing the par-3, 15th from 134 yards with a pitching wedge for his second career hole-in- one — and the first in a professional tournament.
An initiative of the Shaikh Maktoum Golf Foundation, the MENA Golf Tour was created in 2011 with the aim of developing golf in the region. It is affiliated to R&A, the worldwide golf governing body based in the home of golf, St Andrews, and the Arab Golf Federation and enjoys the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) status.
A guaranteed spot on the PGA Tour’s 2018 DEAN & DELUCA Invitational (for the MENA Tour champion), multiple European Tour starts, including the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, the Hassan II Trophy, Maybank Championship Malaysia, and the KLM Open, are some of the added incentives that await MENA Tour members, in addition to playing privileges on the Sunshine Tour, and exemptions into the Final Stage of the Sunshine Tour and Asian Tour Q-Schools.
