Bae leads Van H KBC Augusta in Japan
BY Bruce Young | Japan Tour | 2011 KBC Augusta | Round Two | 26 Aug 2011
The second round of the Vana H KBC Augusta tournament in Fukuoka in southern Japan has been completed and it is the Korean golfer Sang-Moon Bae who, at 15 under, leads the event by two shots over Japan’s Tomohiro Kondo.
The 25 year old Bae has yet to win on the Japan Golf Tour but in just his second season this year he has already been runner-up on two occasions and is clearly yet another significant Korean talent. Bae has won twice on the OneAsia Tour and earlier this season made the cut at the US Open.
Kondo on the other hand is a five time winner on the Japan Golf Tour including earlier this season when he won the Tsuruya Open.
One shot behind Kondo is the leading world ranked player in this field and a golfer who appears destined for great things in the game. Kim Kyung-tae has already won on the Japan and OneAsia Golf Tours this season and played beautifully on his recent trip to the USA where he finished 6th at Firestone, made the cut at the PGA Championship and was then 4th at the Wyndham Championship.
The leading Australian in this low scoring event is Brendan Jones who improved sharply today with a round of 66, although with seven birdies in his first 13 holes he is perhaps a little disappointed it was not even better. Jones is at 8 under and 7 shots behind the Bae.
Also at 8 under are Japan Golf’s two biggest stars at present Ryo Ishikawa and 2009 champion Yuta Ikeda.
Other Australians to make the cut are Neven Basic at 5 under, Kurt Barnes at 4 under, Neil Sarkies at 3 under and Chris Campbell and Paul Sheehan at 2 under.
Discuss this article in our forums
