Second Round Report
Alex Noren took advantage of more benign conditions on day two of the Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open to shoot a bogey-free round of 66 and open up a slender advantage heading into the weekend at Castle Stuart.
The Swede posted six birdies in a flawless display in Inverness to climb to eight under par, one shot clear of New Zealand’s Danny Lee and Englishman Eddie Pepperell, who posted respective rounds of 66 and 67.
World Number Ten Branden Grace (six under par), Ireland’s Padraig Harrington and his fellow Major Champion Graeme McDowell (both five under) are also firmly in contention, whilst the home charge is led by Richie Ramsay (four under), Inverness-born Russell Knox and Marc Warren (both two under).
But it is Noren they all have to catch after the four-time European Tour champion raced home in just 31 shots – the lowest nine of the week so far.
Key quotes
Alex Noren: “I really like this place, it’s such a fun course to play. There are a few very tricky holes, and then a few holes where you can be a lot more aggressive, especially the par fives and a couple of the par fours which are reachable from the tee. Some weeks, we play courses which are tough from the first hole to the 18th, but here it’s a really nice mix so I like it a lot.”
Danny Lee: “It was another great round of golf, it wasn’t windy as yesterday. It was a lot more doable today and there were a lot of birdie chances out there, I think. A lot of the short holes were very reachable – a lot of the par fives felt like they were reachable today.
“I didn’t make any mistakes, missing any chances and made a lot of birdies today which was good. It looks like I’m heading to the right direction, which is good. Hopefully I can keep it going like this.
“It is beautiful out here and I’m just really happy I’m making a lot of birdies out there. It’s really unfortunate what happened to West Virginia area, so I’m giving a little donation every time I make a birdie or an eagle, donating a little bit of money every time.
“I’m very happy that I made a lot of birdies today and hopefully I can make some more the next couple days and hopefully I can put some eagles in there, too.”
Branden Grace: “Obviously the last couple of events have been great, and coming back to links golf is something I like. I like playing here and I like the type of golf you have to play around this place. Got some fond memories here from the past, but hopefully I can go one better this time than the last time.
“I’d like to think that now I don’t have to kind of step back for the guys. I kind of think that I’m getting myself in contention in the big ones and I’m playing some good golf. I know that the day is going to come where I’m going to click in the Majors and then I’m hopefully going to put my hands on one.
“Patience is key here. I got a little bit impatient towards the end of my round, just a little bit tired, you lose concentration so quickly. You just need to stay patient. You’re going to get some bad bounces; you’re going to get some good bounces, and when the birdies come your way, you’re going to have to grab them.”
Padraig Harrington: “I love playing in 90 degrees of sunshine and dead calm, but definitely on a links golf course too, especially this links golf course, because it’s not like the fairways are narrow. The entrances to the greens are very generous too, so you can hit good shots on this golf course. I think the course really does suit the good, strong wind.
“They softened the golf course up a lot today, pushed the tee boxes forward. It was a slightly different challenge. Still the wind was kind of up and down when we were out there. But I certainly preferred yesterday. It was a big, tough challenge yesterday where it was all about making pars and getting the odd birdie to kind of get one in the bank.
“I’m very happy, any time you’re breaking 70 is good. Didn’t play quite as well as yesterday, I was little bit more tentative today.
“But I’m happy with my game and where it’s at. I’m seeing good things in my game and now I’m seeing a few good scores with it, which it’s a good time of the year for playing well.”
Scores after round 2:
136 A Noren (Swe) 70 66,
137 D Lee (Nzl) 71 66, E Pepperell (Eng) 70 67,
138 R Bland (Eng) 70 68, B Grace (RSA) 71 67, M Manassero (Ita) 71 67, J Campillo (Esp) 72 66,
139 G McDowell (Nir) 70 69, P Harrington (Irl) 70 69,
140 R Ramsay (Sco) 72 68, A Sullivan (Eng) 70 70, T Hatton (Eng) 70 70, A Cañizares (Esp) 74 66,
141 Y Yang (Kor) 70 71, C Paisley (Eng) 73 68, F Aguilar (Chi) 69 72, W Ashun (Chn) 72 69, R Gouveia (Por) 72 69,
142 R Knox (Sco) 72 70, M Kaymer (Ger) 72 70, S Hend (Aus) 69 73, N Elvira (Esp) 72 70, M Ilonen (Fin) 71 71, A Levy (Fra) 71 71, M Warren (Sco) 73 69, J Walters (RSA) 72 70,
143 B Dredge (Wal) 71 72, M Lorenzo-Vera (Fra) 74 69, M Carlsson (Swe) 72 71, C Shinkwin (Eng) 74 69, B Hebert (Fra) 75 68, N Fasth (Swe) 72 71, T Bjørn (Den) 73 70, T Pieters (Bel) 73 70, L Donald (Eng) 71 72,
144 G Havret (Fra) 73 71, R Sterne (RSA) 71 73, S Webster (Eng) 74 70, D Howell (Eng) 72 72, R Cabrera Bello (Esp) 71 73, N Colsaerts (Bel) 74 70, N Bertasio (Ita) 72 72, R Jacquelin (Fra) 73 71, P Meesawat (Tha) 74 70, F Zanotti (Par) 77 67, R Wattel (Fra) 73 71, A Wall (Eng) 75 69, L Slattery (Eng) 74 70,
145 R Rock (Eng) 72 73, J Quesne (Fra) 73 72, O Wilson (Eng) 75 70, G Wright (Wal) 74 71, S Stricker (USA) 74 71, J Carlsson (Swe) 75 70, J Doherty (Sco) 72 73, E Molinari (Ita) 72 73, C Hanson (Eng) 75 70, L Bjerregaard (Den) 76 69, M Ford (Eng) 74 71, P Mickelson (USA) 76 69, H Stenson (Swe) 76 69, P Larrazábal (Esp) 73 72, R Evans (Eng) 73 72, P Reed (USA) 75 70,
146 S Kjeldsen (Den) 74 72, R Fisher (Eng) 76 70, M Hoey (Nir) 74 72, T Fleetwood (Eng) 74 72, M Kieffer (Ger) 75 71, S Gros (Fra) 75 71, A Dodt (Aus) 72 74, J Lagergren (Swe) 72 74, J McLeary (Sco) 74 72, R Paratore (Ita) 72 74, J Hansen (Den) 73 73, D Drysdale (Sco) 72 74,
CUT LINE
147 J Singh (Ind) 72 75, S Jamieson (Sco) 76 71, G Bourdy (Fra) 74 73, B Virto (Esp) 80 67, M Fitzpatrick (Eng) 73 74, S Khan (Eng) 73 74, C Lee (Sco) 71 76, G Storm (Eng) 75 72, M Korhonen (Fin) 74 73, R Kakko (Fin) 72 75, P Whiteford (Sco) 76 71, B Evans (Eng) 75 72, H Porteous (RSA) 74 73, A Johnston (Eng) 76 71, K Aphibarnrat (Tha) 76 71,
148 T Jaidee (Tha) 77 71, L Haotong (Chn) 77 71, P Dunne (Irl) 78 70, T Linard (Fra) 76 72, M Jiménez (Esp) 78 70, D Im (USA) 74 74, G Boyd (Eng) 77 71, R Dinwiddie (Eng) 79 69, D Horsey (Eng) 77 71,
149 A Otaegui (Esp) 75 74, R McEvoy (Eng) 76 73, S Chawrasia (Ind) 78 71, M Southgate (Eng) 73 76, O Fisher (Eng) 75 74, C Montgomerie (Sco) 78 71, L Jensen (Den) 76 73, D Brooks (Eng) 78 71,
150 J Lovemark (USA) 82 68, J Luiten (Ned) 76 74, S Lowry (Irl) 77 73, S Lee (Kor) 74 76, S Manley (Wal) 75 75, M Madsen (Den) 76 74, J Gunn (Sco) 77 73, J Edfors (Swe) 77 73,
151 J Fahrbring (Swe) 78 73, R McGowan (Eng) 79 72, J Morrison (Eng) 76 75, R Davies (Wal) 78 73, S Lyle (Sco) 78 73, M Baldwin (Eng) 80 71, J Wang (Kor) 78 73, A Venter (am) (RSA) 78 73,
152 D Lipsky (USA) 74 78, C Berardo (Fra) 79 73, T Olesen (Den) 78 74, K Nicol (Sco) 79 73, S Dyson (Eng) 80 72, J Parry (Eng) 78 74, P Edberg (Swe) 80 72, B Åkesson (Swe) 77 75,
153 G Coetzee (RSA) 79 74, P McGinley (Irl) 77 76, G Stal (Fra) 81 72,
154 P Lawrie (Sco) 81 73, S Kapur (Ind) 78 76, J Winther (Den) 81 73, A Forsyth (Sco) 83 71, R Green (Aus) 78 76, D Dixon (Eng) 79 75, D Lingmerth (Swe) 82 72, A McArthur (Sco) 80 74, P Hanson (Swe) 79 75, J Holmes (USA) 80 74, J Scrivener (Aus) 80 74,
155 N Holman (Aus) 78 77, J Donaldson (Wal) 80 75,
156 R Karlsson (Swe) 84 72,
160 B Rumford (Aus) 83 77,
169 J Jeong (Kor) 88 81,
** D Fichardt (RSA) 80 WD, M Siem (Ger) 80 WD, T Fisher Jnr (RSA) 80 RT, E De La Riva (Esp) 81 WD, E España (Fra) RT 0,
