Laurie Canter just one off halfway lead at Mauritius Open
Saturday 2 December 2017 18:04, UK
Laurie Canter is just one shot off the lead at the halfway stage of the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open as Arjun Atwal remained in pole position.
Canter fired a seven-birdie 66 in blustery conditions on day two at the Heritage Golf Club to join South Africans Dylan Frittelli and Louis DeJager in a share of second place, while Atwal's steady 70 was enough to keep him on top of the leaderboard.
The veteran Indian led by four strokes overnight following his sensational first-round 62, but he made only three birdies at par-fives on day two while dropping shots at the 16th and third holes as his advantage was trimmed to one.
Canter, who retained his European Tour card after finishing 14th at the Qualifying School Final Stage in Spain, made early strides up the leaderboard when he followed an opening par at the 10th with four birdies in six holes before getting into trouble at the long 18th and running up a bogey-six.
The Englishman offset another birdie at the fourth with a bogey at five, but he picked up further shots at each of the next two holes and parred in to stay at nine under alongside the in-form Frittelli and his compatriot DeJager.
Frittelli also played the back nine first and was only one under for his round with four holes remaining, but he birdied the sixth and the eighth and produced a stunning finish when he almost made an albatross at his closing hole.
His powerful three-wood from the tee at the driveable par-four ninth pitched short of the green and hopped over a bunker before trundling onto the green and coming to rest within 18 inches of the pin to set up a tap-in for eagle.
Frittelli's 66 was matched by Canter, while DeJager birdied two of his last three holes to cap a 67 and join the three-way share of second, with Portugal's Jose-Felipe Lima and South African journeyman Justin Walters carding 66s to end the day a shot further adrift.
Former Open champion Louis Oosthuizen recovered from two bogeys over the first three holes to salvage a 68 as he heads into the weekend three shots behind Atwal.
But 2014 Ryder Cup star Jamie Donaldson missed the cut by a shot along with English veteran Barry Lane, while two eagles over the last five holes from Nicolas Colsaerts were not enough for the Belgian to avoid an early exit on one over par.
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