THREE SHARE LEAD IN QATAR MASTERS 

FROM EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS
At the end of the second round at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters, the trio of George Coetzee, Branden Grace and Bernd Wiesberger are  tied on nine-under 135 at the top of a congested leaderboard at Doha Golf Club, thanks to another day of calm conditions in the Middle East.
Out in the afternoon, and with a target to chase, Alfred Dunhill Champion Grace continued a fine run of form which culminated in him claiming a fifth European Tour title on home soil last December, carding five birdies in a round of 68 to finish on nine under par.
That is the same mark as his South Africa compatriot, Coetzee, who earlier in the day had set the target with a five under 67 for nine-under 135 that came as the result of six birdies and a single bogey en route to the top spot.
Alongside the South African pair is Wiesberger, who played with Coetzee over the opening two rounds, and the Austrian shot the best score of the leading threesome thanks to birdies at the first, ninth and tenth before four gains on the bounce from the 13th.
Tucked in close behind at eight under par are a whole host of in-form players, including Byeong-hun An, who shot three under on cut day, one week removed from the first professional hole in one of his career in Abu Dhabi.
The South Korean, who graduated from the European Challenge Tour last year, has Emiliano Grillo for company after the 22 year old Argentine required just 69 strokes.

 They are in a tie for fourth with Marc Warren after the Scot hurtled 51 places through the field, thanks in part to an eagle at the par five first, to card a 65 and match the lowest score of the day.
Sweden’s Johan Carlsson fired the same to jump into a tie for 21st at five under par, while England’s Tommy Fleetwood is one better, after he also matched the day’s best.
Defending champion Sergio Garcia is handily placed inside the top ten at six under par, thanks to consecutive rounds of 69 in Qatar.

KEY QUOTES

George Coetzee (-9)
“I’m playing well, my swing is coming along slightly and I’m also putting pretty nicely. I’ve just got to wait for my birdies, and not force it. It definitely feels like there’s a low number to be had out there, especially in the calm conditions. 
“I had my fair share of rust in the system, after the break – I didn’t touch the clubs over Christmas.  But I’ve played a few events now, so it feels like the rust has worn off and we can just play golf again.”

Branden Grace (-9)
“I don't know why South Africans have such a good record in this event, but it helps that we have good weather back home over the Christmas period, so we’re able to get some good practice in. So by the time we head into The Desert Swing, we are pretty much prepared and ready to go. I think that’s shown over the last couple years, and it’s showing again this week. The South African guys are really performing well, so let’s see if we can get another winner this week.”

Bernd Wiesberger (-9)
“I feel comfortable. I hadn’t really expected to play so well going into these two weeks, especially because I didn’t have my best season last year. So this gives me great confidence, and shows that I’ve been working on the right things.
“I hit a lot of fairways today, and I also felt like I kept the mistakes to a minimum which is a big bonus for me. Having a putter which is working well obviously helps your scoring, as well.”

Sergio Garcia (-6)
“The weather is absolutely perfect, very nice temperature and very little breeze. But there were some very challenging positions out there, so obviously that made it a little bit tougher to get the ball close and make a few more birdies.
“Overall, I’m pretty happy with the way I’m playing, hopefully I can have a good weekend and push up the leaderboard.”

 HALFWAY SCOREBOARD
Par 144 (2x72)
135 B Wiesberger  (Aut) 69 66, G Coetzee (RSA) 68 67, B Grace  (RSA) 67 68, 
136 B An (SKor) 67 69, M Warren (Sco) 71 65, E Grillo (Arg) 67 69
137 A Cañizares  (Esp) 67 70, D Fichardt (RSA) 67 70, R Green (Aus) 70 67
138 O Fisher  (Eng) 65 73, S Garcia  (Esp) 69 69, J Morrison  (Eng) 68 70, T Fleetwood  (Eng) 73 65, A Noren  (Swe) 67 71, G Bourdy (Fra) 70 68, P Lawrie (Irl) 70 68, S Kapur (Ind) 70 68, K Broberg (Swe) 67 71, R Paratore (Ita) 69 69, M Baldwin (Eng) 70 68
139 M Kieffer (Ger) 71 68, E Els (RSA) 67 72, R Cabrera-Bello (Esp) 66 73, J Carlsson (Swe) 74 65, G Havret  (Fra) 70 69, A Sullivan (Eng) 71 68, E De La Riva  (Esp) 70 69, R Gonzalez (Arg) 69 70, M Fitzpatrick  (Eng) 68 71, F Aguilar (Chi) 71 68, K Aphibarnrat (Tha) 68 71
140 P Lawrie (Sco) 67 73, M Foster (Eng) 67 73, M Lorenzo-Vera  (Fra) 70 70, A Quiros  (Esp) 70 70, J Singh (Ind) 70 70, M Hoey  (Nir) 71 69, A Hansen (Den) 71 69, D McGrane (Irl) 68 72, E Pepperell (Eng) 69 71, R Fisher (Eng) 70 70, M Carlsson  (Swe) 71 69, B Hebert  (Fra) 72 68
141 J Rose (Eng) 68 73, S Benson (Eng) 70 71, E Molinari  (Ita) 71 70, B Rumford (Aus) 69 72, M Lampert (Ger) 67 74, H Stenson (Swe) 70 71, S Jamieson  (Sco) 68 73, D Van Der Walt (RSA) 72 69, T Pieters  (Bel) 73 68
142 A Johnston (Eng) 69 73, T Aiken (RSA) 69 73, P Larrazábal (Esp) 71 71, J Barnes (Eng) 72 70, P Waring  (Eng) 70 72, J Quesne  (Fra) 70 72, J Campillo (Esp) 72 70, T Jaidee (Tha) 69 73, P Uihlein  (USA) 69 73
143 R Karlsson (Swe) 70 73, J Roos (RSA) 75 68, R Finch  (Eng) 71 72, W Ormsby (Aus) 74 69, E Espana (Fra) 70 73, M Korhonen (Fin) 73 70, S Gallacher (Sco) 68 75, T Lewis (Eng) 72 71, A Otaegui  (Esp) 73 70, M Tullo (Chi) 69 74, M Nixon (Eng) 72 71, N Colsaerts  (Bel) 70 73, S Kjeldsen (Den) 73 70
144 J Garcia Pinto (Esp) 73 71, M Crespi  (Ita) 76 68, S Khan (Eng) 71 73, O Wilson (Eng) 71 73, Y Yang (SKor) 73 71, D Foos (Ger) 71 73, J Olazábal (Esp) 73 71 
145 A Levy (Fra) 71 74, M Ford (Eng) 70 75, R Ramsay  (Sco) 73 72, M Fraser (Aus) 76 69
146 B Dredge (Wal) 74 72, D Lipsky (USA) 75 71, S Dyson  (Eng) 74 72, J Kruger (RSA) 71 75, S Webster (Eng) 76 70, A Wall (Eng) 75 71, T Olesen (Den) 69 77
147 J Palmer (Eng) 76 71, C Doak (Sco) 71 76, S Hend (Aus) 74 73, T Tree (Eng) 76 71, M Ilonen  (Fin) 72 75, C Schwartzel  (RSA) 69 78, F Zanotti (Par) 71 76, D Howell (Eng) 73 74, R Rock (Eng) 72 75
148 C Lee (Sco) 75 73, G Stal  (Fra) 72 76, R Bland (Eng) 74 74, J Parry (Eng) 74 74, D Drysdale (Sco) 70 78, L Bjerregaard  (Den) 75 73, M Siem  (Ger) 74 74, A Murdaca (am) (Aus) 76 72,
149 S Hutsby  (Eng) 73 76, O Farr (Wal) 76 73, M Madsen  (Den) 76 73, J Lando Casanova  (Fra) 72 77, 
150 T Hatton (Eng) 75 75, G Mulroy (RSA) 72 78, N Fasth (Swe) 74 76, R Jacquelin (Fra) 73 77
151 M Manassero (Ita) 76 75, J Hrinda (am) (Svk) 77 74 
152 R Wattel  (Fra) 75 77
153 G Storm  (Eng) 76 77
155 D Brooks (Eng) 74 81
160 J Jeong (SKor) 78 82
162 A Al Kaabi (am) (Qat) 79 83
168 A Al-Shahrani (am) (Qat) 85 83
** S Hansen (Den) 75 WD,

EUROPEAN TOUR COMMUNICATIONS