Whiteford and Henry sharing top Scpt tag on 140

Hansen holds halfway lead in Oman

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS
Denmark's Joachim B Hansen retained the lead of the NBO Golf Classic Grand Final at the halfway point after a five under par second round of 67 for an 11-under tally of 133, but Road to Oman Rankings leader Ricardo Gouveia and Englishman Max Orrin – who won on this course last year – are in close pursuit in the European Challenge Tour’s season finale at Muscsat in the United Arab Emirates.
Hansen made six birdies in the Omani sunshine as he built on his opening round of 66 to move up into fourth position in the projected Road to Oman Rankings, having started the week in 17th spot - just outside the top 15 who will win European Tour cards at the end of this week.
The Dane played on The European Tour for the last two seasons after graduating from the Challenge Tour in 2012 and is happy with his form as he hunts a maiden victory at Muscat’s Almouj Golf, The Wave.
“My swing feels very comfortable right now,” said the 25 year old. “There are a few shots going left but I just need to get the rhythm and the arms through it and I’ll be fine.
“I kept the ball in play and hit a lot of greens. I didn’t really putt as well as I did yesterday but it was still pretty good. I’m looking forward to the next few days and hopefully getting that top 15 spot, so it’s going to be fun.
“I definitely feel like I’m back at the level I was at in 2012. My game has developed a lot since that time, but, like I did in Kazakhstan in the first round, when I get the ball in play sometime the putter just holes everything.
“The two years on The European Tour gave me a lot of experience, to see how good the players are and how you have to play. You don’t have to hit the golden shot every time, just stick to your game and hole the putts.
“I just stick to my own game and don’t look at what anybody else is doing but it was good to play with Ricardo. He’s a very steady player and strikes the ball really well. I just have to try get by every day and see where we are at the end.”
Gouveia, whose stellar season has earned his caddie the right to wear a golden bib, reflective of the Portuguese star’s Number One position in the Rankings, credited his putter for his good scoring in the opening rounds.
“I played well again, hit the ball ok,” said the 24 year old. “I hit the ball better yesterday but I holed some important putts today. I’ve only made one bogey in two rounds, which is pretty good, and I just want to keep it going.
Leading Brit is England's Max Orrin in third place after a 66 for 136 - three off the pace.
Peter Whiteford and Scott Henry are sharing the leading Scot tag on 140.
SECOND-ROUND SCORES
Par 144 (2x72)
133 J Hansen  (Den) 66 67
134 R Gouveia (Por) 67 67
136 M Orrin (Eng) 70 66
137 B Åkesson (Swe) 68 69
138 J Winther (Den) 70 68, D Im (USA) 71 67, J Robinson (Eng) 68 70,
139 J Dantorp (Swe) 69 70, R Evans  (Eng) 68 71, D Huizing (Ned) 70 69, D Foos (Ger) 72 67, N Elvira  (Esp) 70 69,
140 P Whiteford (Sco) 73 67, T Linard (Fra) 70 70, R McGowan  (Eng) 72 68, S Henry  (Sco) 69 71,
141 J Hahn (USA) 70 71, G Murray  (Sco) 70 71, C Shinkwin (Eng) 69 72, R Fox (Nzl) 74 67, R Davies (Wal) 73 68,
142 M Delpodio  (Ita) 70 72, R McGee (Irl) 73 69, B Stone (RSA) 71 71, B Virto Astudillo (Esp) 71 71,
143 S Gros (Fra) 69 74, R Coles (Eng) 74 69, H Joannes  (Bel) 71 72, P Widegren  (Swe) 70 73, C Hanson (Eng) 70 73, S Arnold  (Aus) 72 71,
144 S Soderberg (Swe) 74 70, S Jeppesen  (Swe) 70 74, T Murray (Eng) 69 75, J Senior (Eng) 74 70,
145 L Gagli  (Ita) 71 74, J Fahrbring (Swe) 73 72,
146 A Björk (Swe) 73 73, A McArthur  (Sco) 75 71, G Boyd  (Eng) 74 72,
147 M Søgaard  (Den) 72 75,
148 C Sordet  (Fra) 76 72,
149 J McLeary  (Sco) 78 71, S Walker (Eng) 76 73,
154 H Porteous (RSA) 76 78,


EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS