Spain’s David Puig and Jbe Kruger from South Africa took the halfway lead in the International Series Macau presented by Wynn today by the only way possible, shooting in the low 60s.
Puig, winner of the season-opening IRS Malaysian Open and arguably the hottest property on the Asian Tour at the moment, shot a six-under-par 64 while Kruger fired a 63.
They lead on 11-under on a day of low scoring here at Macau Golf & Country Club – the venerable venue that has hosted Asian Tour events since the late 1990s.
Sweden’s Bjorn Hellgren and Mito Pereira from Chile are one shot back, after rounds of 65 and 66 respectively -in the inaugural edition of this US$2million event, which is the second stop on The International Series’ 2024 season and the fourth leg of the Asian Tour.
Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz (66), Japan rookie Yuta Sugiura (67) and Pat Perez from the United States (67) are a further stroke behind.
Overnight leader Li Haotong from China tumbled down the leaderboard with a 72. He is in a tie for 42nd on five under.
Puig, in his usual casual and relaxed approach, continued to do what he has done a lot of recently: hit big drives, hole a lot of putts and lead golf tournaments.
He made seven birdies, including on 17 and 18, and dropped one shot.
“A good day,” said the 22-year-old, who plays for Fireballs GC on the LIV Golf League.
“Kept it pretty good off the tee, which obviously helps. Pretty happy with my game and ready for the weekend.”
The Spaniard, who won the International Series Singapore last year for his maiden win as a professional, is playing his fifth event in a row and he is starting to feel the effects.
He added: “I am tired, very tired. It wasn't the best preparation for this week. I mean, spent a couple of days just in the hotel and played nine holes on Wednesday. But again, I'm playing pretty good. I guess playing a lot in a row helps to score better and that's pretty good. So hopefully I can keep doing the same this weekend and take the trophy home.”
Kruger is a two-time winner on the Asian Tour – his most recent being the Shinhan Donghae Open in 2019 – and based on today’s performance he is hungry for a third.
“I'm making putts, that's as much as I can say,” said Kruger, who also won the Shigeo Nagashima Invitational Sega Sammy Cup on the Japan Tour last July.
“I'm not really hitting many fairways. I'm hitting the greens but I'm not getting it in the fairway and that makes life difficult for me actually. But when it's on the green, I'm making them.
“I've always liked this course. You know it's actually short, but it's difficult with the wind. I told my wife Denise [who is caddying for him] it's very funny not to have that much wind, because we are so used to hitting the same shots over and over. And today there was almost no breeze at the end there which was lovely.”
Hellgren, one of the biggest hitters on the Asian Tour, harnessed his power with precision to move into contention. He has been playing on the Asian Tour for the past two years and has overpowered courses with some prodigious driving – he ranked first in driving distance in 2022, with an average of 313.62 yards, and seventh last year.
That skill set has not yet led to a victory, although one of his best performances on the Asian Tour came here on the same course at last year’s SJM Macao Open, when he tied for 11th.
“I think lines off the tee are crucial, as there are some blind tee shots,” said 33-year-old Hellgren, who played on the same golf team as Brooks Koepka and Daniel Berger at Florida State University.
“I try to take advantage as much as I can with my driver. So off the tee, if you can hit some long drives with good lines, you will pick up a few shots.”
He made an eagle, on the par-five 13th, five birdies and two bogeys.
He said: “With this new Callaway driver that I have, it's fairly straight. I don't try to hit it as hard as I can like I used to two years ago, you still have to hit it quite straight here. It's tricky with the wind, we have to play what we feel. But I try to take advantage of my driving, yes.”
The Swede also has the added incentive of having his fiancee Lovisa here with him this week.
Ortiz won the International Series Oman last month by four shots from South African Louis Oosthuizen, with in-form Joaquin Niemann from Chile one shot further back, for arguably the finest performance of his career. He clearly has not lost any momentum.
He said: “Good, I'm happy. I feel like it's a golf course, right now, that's pretty gettable. And I've taken advantage not as much as I wanted to, but I’m in a good place for the weekend.
“It's kind of a funky golf course, you have all kinds of different shots, all kinds of lies. So it requires a lot of different shots and I think I do that well.”
Sugiura is emerging as this week’s dark horse. He is in his first season as a professional and made it through this year’s Asian Tour Qualifying School – something that surprised nobody as last year he sensationally won the Dunlop Phoenix as an amateur.
“I played really well today, same as yesterday,” he said. “With the win last year, I managed to gain a lot of confidence in my golf. Currently I’m in contention for another win, so I hope I can keep my confidence up and have a good weekend.”
The 22-year-old has big plans for 2024. He wants to win the Money List title in Japan, and added: “If I have more chances to play on The International Series, I would love to play as many as I can.”
Thailand’s amateur star Ratchanon ‘TK’ Chantananuwat carded a 64 and is in a group of players tied for eighth, just three behind the leaders, along with compatriot Kiradech Aphibarnrat, who returned a 63.
The International Series is the most prized pathway in golf. It consists of 10 elite tournaments sanctioned by the Asian Tour and offers the year-long Rankings leader promotion to the LIV Golf League
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