The 24-year-old Belgian birdied his first three holes and his last three holes Friday.
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But this was hardly a masterpiece.
Stenson, who stabilised his round in tough conditions with a 50-foot birdie putt on the second hole and a 108-footer to save par on the third, said: “There’s a lot of golf still to play”.
“On the third both Rafa and I drove into the water but I managed to tickle a four-wood up onto the front part of the green”. “Just pet it right in there”, Johnny Miller said as Malaysia’s Danny Chia stood over a putt.
“I had the hole in one [on day one] which was a big stroke of luck but there haven’t been any distance putts made yet so I feel like if I keep doing what I am doing I will get a string of birdies”. “First of all it’s hard to get a putt that long on any green in the world; maybe on the double greens at St Andrews you can find one”.
He followed by duffing a tee shot and making bogey, and it was a relief to play what he called ordinary golf until another wild finish. He finished his round with a delicate pitch from a drop area, but only after his caddie had to ask Brazilian fans in the bleachers around the 18th green to move 20 feet because their shadows were dancing around his golf ball.
The Swede birdied the next two holes, but his problems with the par-threes continued with another blemish at the 17th, although he rattled in a confident six-foot putt for a closing birdie to get back to eight under. “All in all, happy with that”. At No. 5 in the world he’s the highest-ranked player in the field of 60 and he’s the reigning British Open champion.
After an wonderful first round, Frasier was solid again on Friday, but he did miss a few chances to post an even lower number than his 69.
Two weeks later, he contended at the PGA Championship, and then set his sights on the Olympics, never putting down the significance of a victory here.
“Well, you know he’s going to shoot a good score, ” Pieters said. “Ours is a bit more down to the form for the week and on any given day”.
A former pro-golfer, Wallis has taken a week off work as a signwriter to wear green and gold in Rio, and the knockabout pair from Corowa, in country NSW, are having the time of their lives.
Fraser was at 10-under 132 another day, another Olympic record.
Fraser has proven over the past two days that he’s mastered the course, but isn’t getting complacent. The Australian caught only a little of the nasty weather, and it didn’t last long before the sun came out. That may be why you see so many Europeans and/or European tour players at the top: They travel well. 12 and 16 combined with the round of the day from Belgium’s Pieters cost Fraser his solo lead after 17 holes.
France’s Gregory Bourdy and England’s Justin Rose are at 6 under after posting 2-under 69s in Round 2.
Heaven knows what the mighty swimmer and keen golfer Michael Phelps must be thinking when he takes a break from winning his latest gold medal to contemplate the lamentable efforts of Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler and Matt Kuchar, with the latter best placed all the way down in a tie for 18th.
U.S. stars, who are four of the eight top-rated players in the event, continued to struggle with Rickie Fowler on five over, sharing next-to-last, and two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson, who opened on 73, to tee off in the final group.
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