Norris shares lead at Asian Q-School
BY Bruce Young | Asian Tour | 2009 Asian Tour Q-School - Final Stage | Round Two | 14 Jan 2009
At the completion of 36 of the 90 holes that make up the final stage of Asian Tour qualifying, three players are currently tied in the lead on 140.
Australian Jason Norris, South African George Coetzee and England’s John Parry have opened up a one shot lead but with three rounds still to play and only 40 cards available at the completion of qualifying on Saturday they will need to continue their good play.
Only six shots separate the top 40 and just eleven shots between the leaders and the players just making the 36 hole cut so conceivably all who have made it into the third round still have a chance.
Norris has experienced a horror twelve months after crashing a push bike when skylarking at Hyatt Regency Coolum following the second round of the PGA Championship there in 2007. He broke his jaw in 13 places, had all his top teeth removed and has only recently returned to tournament play. He has shown some good form on occasions however and if he is able to secure his Asian Tour card then he could well be in for a significant turnaround in fortunes.
John Parry was selected for Walker Cup for Great Britain and Ireland in 2007 but, despite making it to the Final Stage, failed to get his European Tour card at the recent European Tour qualifying.
22-year-old George Coetzee, who briefly played collegiate golf in the US, made the cut at both the South African Open and the Alfred Dunhill events in his homeland in recent weeks and has won several lesser events on South Africa’s Sunshine Tour.
Matthew Griffin was the next best of the Australians in a share of 7th position, Peter Cooke is 14th, Mitchell Tasker, Michael Light and Tim Stewart are 19th, Chris Gaunt, Heath Reed and Jason King 26th, James Mclean, Brad Lamb and Adam le Vesconte 39th, New Zealand’s Mark Purser 50th, Scott Arnold, Richard Moir and Adam Groom 50th, Rohan Blizzard, Graydon Woolridge, Kim D. Ho, Brad McIntosh and Chris Campbell 66th, Jamie Arnold 80th, Vernon Sexton Fink 93rd, Stuart Lunn-Walker and Nathan Main 93rd and Anthony Brown and Brad Andrews on the cut line in 108th position.
A further cut will be made at the completion of 72 holes with the top 80 players left to battle for the 40 cards on offer on Saturday.
