Chase Hanna (left) and Pablo Larrazabal in action.
Doha: After enduring a shaky start, Pablo Larrazabal staged a brilliant comeback in the second round of the $2m Commercial Bank Qatar Masters to keep one-shot lead at the Doha Golf Club, yesterday.
Starting the day with a two-shot lead after a round of 64 on the opening day, the Spaniard trailed by four strokes after a front-nine 40 following a double and three bogeys.
But the 38-year-old made a turnaround with an eagle in the 10th and birdies in 1th, 16th and 18th to return with a card of 71 to stay as leader with nine under par, eclipsing Marcus Kinhult’s effort of 65 - the lowest round yesterday.
“It was a tough start. I didn’t expect the drive on the first to go so far right,” Larrazabal, a six-time DP World Tour winner, said yesterday.
“I started par-bogey-bogey and that wasn’t in the plans for Friday. I went bogey-double bogey on eight and nine to shoot 40 on the front nine but I said to Raul, come on, yesterday we shot six under on the back and we know that we like the back,” he added.
Larrazabal said he availed the birdie chances well that helped him make a comeback.
“It was one of those days where you have to keep working and believe in the way you’ve been playing the last month or so and to keep fighting. There are a lot of birdie chances on the back and I took a few,” he said.
“Mentally you have to recover, you have to believe in the shots you plan and the shots you hit. That’s what we did and it paid off. To shoot one under par after going four over, it proves to us that we are in a good mental spot. We are ready to make mistakes and to recover from them,” he added.
Larrazabal, however, faces a tough challenge from Adrian Meronk, Wilco Nienaber and Chase Hanna, who are just one shot behind him on joint second.
Poland’s Meronk, whose card of 70 included five birdies and three bogeys, was pleased with the second round outcome.
“I got off to a good start, all was going well and then I slowed down a bit in the middle of the round but I got a good birdie on the last and overall the result is very satisfying,” the 28-year-old said.
“It was nice this morning, it wasn’t as hot but the wind picked up straight away so it was tricky, but I played solid. We had to adapt because the wind was from completely the other direction and much stronger. We changed strategies and did a good job. It wasn’t as good as yesterday but I think it’s playing tougher,” he added.
South Africa’s Nienaber played another round of 68 while American Hanna carded 66 after 70 in the first round to keep close pursuit of Larrazabal.
“Both days were pretty good. I’m happy with both of them but today, being bogey-free, I didn’t think it was easy with this wind so I’m happy with the score,” said Nienaber.
“I’m happy with my game at the moment. More of the same coming at the weekend, hopefully, and I’ll just keep on doing what I do,” he added.
Hanna said: “It feels good. I joke a lot with my buddies back home – I’m either a missed cut or in contention guy. I played well both days and I was happy with how today went. It was a lot steadier today. I really hit it nicely off the tee and my iron shots were good, especially on the par threes. I kept it pretty stress-free.”
Sitting alone on fifth is Frenchman Romain Langasque, who scored 71 for a seven under.
“It was a totally different hole today. I hit driver and three wood just left of the green on nine. I think the course will change every day and I just need to stay patient and see what happens,” said Langasque.
Commercial Bank Qatar Masters
Leading Scorers
Second Round
135 - Pablo Larrazabal, Spain 64-71
136 - Chase Hanna, United States 70-66
136 - Adrian Meronk, Poland 66-70
136 - Wilco Nienaber, South Africa 68-68
137 - Romain Langasque, France 66-71
138 - Ewen Ferguson, Scotland 67-71
138 - Daniel Gavins, England 71-67
138 - Matthew Jordan, England 69-69
138 - Lukas Nemecz, Austria 71-67
139 - Julien Brun, France 70-69
139 - Jens Dantorp, Sweden 68-71
139 - Marcus Kinhult, Sweden 74-65
139 - T Lawrence, South Africa 70-69
139 - Edoardo Molinari, Italy 69-70
139 - Shubhankar Sharma, India 66-73
