Alex Haindl signed for a three-under-par 67 on Thursday to take a one-stroke lead going into Friday’s final round of the Betway Championship in the Sunshine Tour’s new Rise-Up Series.
With conditions continuing to test the field at the Killarney Country Club, Haindl made some big birdie putts and equally important par saves to top the leaderboard on three-under-par 137 overall.
Round 2 ready ☑️#Gr8nessBeginsHere #RiseUpSeries pic.twitter.com/fAmrCjS46b
— Compleat Golfer (@CompleatGolfer) August 20, 2020
Haindl’s second-round display backed up the decent start start he made on Wednesday after he opened his account with a first-round 70. Now, the 37-year-old feels like he’s moving in the right direction as the battle wages on in Johannesburg.
‘I turned level par and then made a 20-footer for birdie on the first. I had a good chance on two and didn’t make that, but then on the third I made a 10-footer for birdie,’ said Haindl, a three-time winner on the Sunshine Tour whose last victory came in 2018.
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‘The fifth is a par five and I made birdie there as well. I was also good out of the bunkers today and had a few good up-and-downs. Your short game is key on this course because you do miss a lot of greens. The course has been playing very firm and fast and it’s been difficult to get close to any of the pins. It’s been tricky.
‘I’ve been working hard during the lockdown. But you don’t know what to expect until you test it in competition. You can only do so much hitting into a net in your garage. But it’s nice to see the game is decent. It’s just a case of sharpening it up now.’
Haindl will start Friday’s final round one shot ahead of Anton Haig, who also delivered a solid second-round showing thanks to a one-under-par 69.
Haig, who has been playing a lot of social golf at Killarney Country Club lately, believes he was well prepared from the start for the challenging course.
Finishing in style ?
An excellent ? for @Haigy777 on the 9th – his final hole for the day.#Gr8nessBeginsHere #RiseUpSeries pic.twitter.com/pYiv2dDr6O— Compleat Golfer (@CompleatGolfer) August 20, 2020
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‘I recently joined a group of golfers who play quite a few money games at Killarney. It’s helped me so much playing here a lot more in recent weeks. I’ve had probably about 10 practice rounds here in the last couple of weeks,’ he said.
Friday’s final round will be streamed live on DStv Now Channel 241 and on the Sunshine Tour’s platforms on YouTube and Facebook from 12-3pm.
