New Zealander Daniel Pearce has clung to the lead at the Fiji International after playing in the morning on day two.
Scoring this morning didn’t reflect the calmer conditions which greeted players with Pearce shooting 1-under 71.
However, this was enough to ensure he had a two shot buffer in the clubhouse as the afternoon field heads out on Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course.
“It’s always nice to be on top. I can’t complain about how things went today,” said Pearce, whose round included five birdies, two bogeys and a double.
“I got off to a pretty steady start. Chipped in on the second and then hit in the hazard on four and made bogey.
“I had a couple of hiccups early on the back-9, but a couple of birdies late in the piece got it back under par which was nice.”
Pearce again sang the praises of the Natadola Bay Championship Golf Course saying it suits a good ball striker.
“I really like the changes they’ve made since last year. I wasn’t a big fan of some of the greens, so it’s nice to see they’re gone and it’s a bit friendlier out there in places,” added Pearce.
“It’s definitely going to benefit you if you’re a good ball striker. You get a pretty good advantage if you’re hitting the ball well and controlling your ball well in the wind.”
South Australian Adam Bland looked set to produce a low round opening with a birdie at the 10th and adding another at the 13th hole.
However Bland got unlucky on the par-5 17th, making a triple bogey on a hole where he made an eagle in the first round.
“I got off to a nice start and made a couple of birdies early on with a long putt on the 10th and then I made a short birdie putt on the 13th,” said Bland.
“I was just kind of cruising along and then made an eight down 17 and that was disappointing. That’s a birdie hole, and I turned it into a triple with a couple of bad breaks and that’s it.”
Determined not to let it affect his attitude, Bland was quick to bounce back making a birdie at the 1st eventually finishing the round on 1-under the card to be two shots off the lead.
“I’ve been struggling a bit mentally lately so to have a couple of good rounds in the conditions is great.”
“Little bit of an attitude adjustment to start off to try and enjoy it a little more, it’s a pretty good job that we’ve got out here so not make things out like it’s the worst job we’ve got.”
Joining Bland on the leaderboard are David McKenzie and Peter Wilson who also had rounds of 71.