....................................................James Nitties, leader by four strokes

Nitties enjoys the hot seat in NSW Open

New South Welshman James Nitties has overcome hot temperatures and strong winds to take a four-stroke lead at the halfway mark of the 2009 NSW Open at The Vintage, Hunter Valley.
The 27 year-old fired a second round 68 to go with his first round 65 to be at nine-under 133.
In stark contrast from yesterday morning’s calm conditions today’s weather made scoring difficult for most.
“The breeze got up early so I just tried to hang in there knowing it was going to be a tough day at the office.” said Nitties.
“I got lucky on 8 and made a good putt for par before making birdie on my final hole (9) so that was a nice way to finish.”
The tournament leader had plenty of praise for the field and was delighted to be playing in front of friends and family.
“Its a nice position to be in with the field that has assembled here this week.” Nitties said.
“Along with Nathan there is POM (Peter O’Malley), Tim Wilkinson, Aaron Townsend and a number of local guys in great form. This is ideal preparation for next week’s Australian Open.”
Nitties will look to claim his first Australasian Tour title on home soil having been in contention at the Australian Masters at Kingston Heath, finishing fifth behind Tiger Woods.
Having secured his US PGA Tour card for the 2010 season, the youthful Novocastrian has a humble, mature outlook and has come a long way in the last year and will be hard to run down on the weekend.
Another player in contention is 26 year-old Craig Scott who sits in second position at five-under 137 after rounds of 67 and 70.
The Victorian is nicely placed heading into the weekend despite some up and down form over his morning round.
With a fresh approach to the game, Scott was appreciative of the work he has been able to achieve after recently changing coaches.
“My new coach Glenn Joyner has given me the right messages to get the improvement in my game at the right time.”
After a recent Top-10 in the Australian Masters, Scott is confident he is ready to take that next step in his career.
Overnight leader Nathan Green had a disappointing day dropping back to two-under.
The 2009 NSW Open once again features the Team Challenge Pro-Am over the final two days of the Championship. Players who make the weekend cut are paired with amateurs to compete, using the four-ball, best-ball Stableford scoring format.

HALFWAY LEADERS

Par 142 (2x71)

All players from Australia

133 James Nitties 65 68.

137 Craig Scott 67 70.

138 Aaron Pike 68 70.

139 Andrew Bonhomme 68 71, Doug Holloway 65 74, Mark Purser 66 73.

140 Nathan Green 64 76, Gary Simpson 71 69.

141 Rohan Blizard 71 70, Steve Jones 67 74, Grant Moorhead 676 74, Jason Norris 70 71, Aaron Townsend 70 71.