March 14-17
Karen Country Club, Nairobi, Kenya
€1,100,000
Live leaderboard
Round 1, Round 3, Round 4
Louis de Jager opened up a commanding four-shot lead at the halfway stage of the Magical Kenya Open presented by Absa after carding a second round of 66 in Nairobi.
The South African shared the overnight lead with England's Jack Singh Brar going into Day Two at Karen Country Club, but after bagging seven birdies today he put daylight between himself and the rest of the field.
"I had to find my feet a bit at the start of the season but I'm feeling comfortable out here now.
"I told the guys when we played a practice round on Tuesday, after the desert, you could feel you were in Africa, back in our continent. You get used to the feel of the Kikuyu grass, and the ball travels the same as back home in Pretoria, distance wise, so it really feels like we're back home."
De Jager, who triumphed on the Sunshine Tour earlier this year, will have history on his side going into the weekend because over the last five seasons a player has led by four or more shots after 36 holes on ten occasions on the European Tour – with seven going on to win.
"My game plan over the weekend is not to be too aggressive. The most important thing is hitting the fairways and hitting the greens because the greens are quite small. If you hit the greens you've always got a good birdie chance here."
Four shots off the pace in a share of second place are Singh Brar and Spaniard Adri Arnaus. Both European Challenge Tour graduates, the pair are well poised to make a charge for a maiden European Tour title after rounds of 70 and 68 respectively today.
“It has been a fun two days," said Singh Brar. "Yesterday I played really solid and today I kept it in there again today.
“It was a bit of an up and down round today – a bit of a mixed bag. I had a couple of good opportunities early doors and then missed a good birdie chance on nine which stunted my movement a little bit – then I was a bit scruffy on the back nine.
“I'm still in a good position and I'm looking forward to the weekend.”
? The best of the leader's second round.#MagicalKenyaOpen pic.twitter.com/q4IqMzg7pY
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) March 15, 2019
In contention again is South African Justin Harding, who is five behind his countryman de Jager. The World Number 52, who triumphed in Qatar last week, is looking to become the first player to win back-to-back European Tour events since Justin Rose, who achieved the feat in 2017.
“I was a little bit more aggressive today as you have to get it in close here as it can be awkward in places," said Harding.
“You have to pick and choose your moments here and I did that well out there. I have been trying to make less mistakes recently and I went over the green just once today – that wasn't the case yesterday – so I am really happy with my performance.”
Pos. |
Player | Nat |
To Par |
R1 |
R2 |
Total |
1 |
Louis De Jager | RSA |
-12 |
64 |
66 |
130 |
T2 |
Jack Singh-Brar | ENG |
-8 |
64 |
70 |
134 |
T2 |
Adria Arnaus | ESP |
-8 |
66 |
68 |
134 |
T4 |
Guido Migliozzi | ITA |
-7 |
67 |
68 |
135 |
T4 |
Justin Harding | RSA |
-7 |
70 |
65 |
135 |
T4 |
Gaganjeet Bhullar | IND |
-7 |
65 |
70 |
135 |
T7 |
Liam Johnston | SCO |
-6 |
67 |
69 |
136 |
T7 |
Stuart Manley | WAL |
-6 |
71 |
65 |
136 |
T9 |
Aaron Cockerill | CAN |
-5 |
69 |
68 |
137 |
T9 |
Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano | ESP |
-5 |
71 |
66 |
137 |
T9 |
Romain Langasque | FRA |
-5 |
67 |
70 |
137 |
T9 |
Kalle Samooja | FIN |
-5 |
70 |
67 |
137 |
T13 |
George Coetzee | RSA |
-4 |
72 |
66 |
138 |
T13 |
Lasse Jensen | DNK |
-4 |
71 |
67 |
138 |
T15 |
Seenappa Chikkarangappa | IND |
-3 |
70 |
69 |
139 |
T15 |
Kim Koivu | FIN |
-3 |
70 |
69 |
139 |
T15 |
Marcel Schneider | GER |
-3 |
70 |
69 |
139 |
T15 |
Anton Karlsson | SWE |
-3 |
69 |
70 |
139 |
T15 |
Ivan Cantero | ESP |
-3 |
71 |
68 |
139 |
T15 |
Max Schmitt | GER |
-3 |
69 |
70 |
139 |
T15 |
Hugo Leon | CHI |
-3 |
67 |
72 |
139 |
T15 |
Hyo-Won Park | KOR |
-3 |
69 |
70 |
139 |
T23 |
Josh Geary | NZL |
-2 |
67 |
73 |
140 |
T23 |
Ricardo Melo Gouveia | POR |
-2 |
74 |
66 |
140 |
T23 |
Pedro Figueiredo | POR |
-2 |
72 |
68 |
140 |
T23 |
Tom Murray | ENG |
-2 |
72 |
68 |
140 |
T23 |
Matthew Nixon | ENG |
-2 |
69 |
71 |
140 |
T23 |
Thomas Bjorn | DEN |
-2 |
70 |
70 |
140 |
T23 |
Simon Ngige | KEN |
-2 |
68 |
72 |
140 |
T23 |
Cormac Sharvin | NIR |
-2 |
69 |
71 |
140 |
T23 |
Christiaan Bezuidenhout | RSA |
-2 |
67 |
73 |
140 |
T23 |
Michael Hoey | NIR |
-2 |
66 |
74 |
140 |
T33 |
Johannes Veerman | USA |
-1 |
76 |
65 |
141 |
T33 |
Niklas Lemke | SWE |
-1 |
72 |
69 |
141 |
T33 |
Connor Syme | SCO |
-1 |
71 |
70 |
141 |
T33 |
Kristoffer Reitan | NOR |
-1 |
73 |
68 |
141 |
T33 |
David Cooke | USA |
-1 |
70 |
71 |
141 |
T33 |
Khalin Joshi | IND |
-1 |
72 |
69 |
141 |
T33 |
Jack Senior | ENG |
-1 |
69 |
72 |
141 |
T40 |
Ewen Ferguson | SCO |
Par |
73 |
69 |
142 |
T40 |
Nick Cullen | AUS |
Par |
72 |
70 |
142 |
T40 |
Ben Stow | ENG |
Par |
75 |
67 |
142 |
T40 |
Henric Sturehed | SWE |
Par |
73 |
69 |
142 |
T40 |
Haydn Porteous | RSA |
Par |
69 |
73 |
142 |
T40 |
Ross McGowan | ENG |
Par |
74 |
68 |
142 |
T40 |
Bryce Easton | RSA |
Par |
72 |
70 |
142 |
T40 |
Justus Madoya | KEN |
Par |
71 |
71 |
142 |
T40 |
Maarten Lafeber | NED |
Par |
72 |
70 |
142 |
T40 |
Filippo Bergamaschi | ITA |
Par |
67 |
75 |
142 |
T40 |
Christofer Blomstrand | SWE |
Par |
70 |
72 |
142 |
T40 |
Sebastian Soederberg | SWE |
Par |
70 |
72 |
142 |
T40 |
John Catlin | USA |
Par |
71 |
71 |
142 |
T40 |
Oliver Wilson | ENG |
Par |
72 |
70 |
142 |
T40 |
Calum Hill | SCO |
Par |
71 |
71 |
142 |
T55 |
Borja Virto | ESP |
1 |
75 |
68 |
143 |
T55 |
Joel Girrbach | SWE |
1 |
72 |
71 |
143 |
T55 |
Joseph Dean | ENG |
1 |
75 |
68 |
143 |
T55 |
Nico Geyger | CHI |
1 |
76 |
67 |
143 |
T55 |
Jose-Filipe Lima | POR |
1 |
75 |
68 |
143 |
T55 |
Clement Sordet | FRA |
1 |
70 |
73 |
143 |
T55 |
Steven Tiley | ENG |
1 |
73 |
70 |
143 |
T55 |
Sean Crocker | USA |
1 |
72 |
71 |
143 |
T55 |
Hugues Joannes | BEL |
1 |
70 |
73 |
143 |
T55 |
Pep Angles | ESP |
1 |
73 |
70 |
143 |
T65 |
David Boote | WAL |
2 |
69 |
75 |
144 |
T65 |
Jeff Winther | SWE |
2 |
80 |
64 |
144 |
T65 |
Martin Leth Simonsen | DEN |
2 |
73 |
71 |
144 |
T65 |
Robert MacIntyre | SCO |
2 |
71 |
73 |
144 |
T65 |
Mathieu Fenasse | FRA |
2 |
75 |
69 |
144 |
T65 |
Oliver Farr | WAL |
2 |
70 |
74 |
144 |
T65 |
Oscar Lengden | SWE |
2 |
74 |
70 |
144 |
T65 |
Adrien Saddier | SCO |
2 |
72 |
72 |
144 |
T65 |
Bernd Ritthammer | GER |
2 |
71 |
73 |
144 |
T65 |
Nick Mccarthy | ENG |
2 |
73 |
71 |
144 |
T65 |
Ben Evans | ENG |
2 |
72 |
72 |
144 |
T65 |
Darius van Driel | NED |
2 |
71 |
73 |
144 |
T65 |
Renato Paratore | ITA |
2 |
74 |
70 |
144 |
T65 |
Max Orrin | ENG |
2 |
74 |
70 |
144 |
T65 |
Simon Forsstroem | SWE |
2 |
74 |
70 |
144 |
CUT |
Daan Huizing | NED |
3 |
72 |
73 |
145 |
CUT |
David Borda | ESP |
3 |
73 |
72 |
145 |
CUT |
Dismas Indiza Anyonyi | KEN |
3 |
69 |
76 |
145 |
CUT |
Erik Van Rooyen | RSA |
3 |
74 |
71 |
145 |
CUT |
Gavin Moynihan | IRL |
3 |
72 |
73 |
145 |
CUT |
Greg Snow | KEN |
3 |
73 |
72 |
145 |
CUT |
Gregory Havret | FRA |
3 |
75 |
70 |
145 |
CUT |
Jacques Kruyswijk | RSA |
3 |
71 |
74 |
145 |
CUT |
Lorenzo Gagli | ITA |
3 |
73 |
72 |
145 |
CUT |
Matteo Manassero | ITA |
3 |
73 |
72 |
145 |
CUT |
Per Laengfors | SWE |
3 |
73 |
72 |
145 |
CUT |
Raphael De Sousa | CHE |
3 |
77 |
68 |
145 |
CUT |
Shubhankar Sharma | IND |
3 |
74 |
71 |
145 |
CUT |
Steven Brown | ENG |
3 |
73 |
72 |
145 |
CUT |
William Liu | CHN |
3 |
70 |
75 |
145 |
CUT |
Alexander Knappe | GER |
4 |
72 |
74 |
146 |
CUT |
Chris Lloyd | ENG |
4 |
71 |
75 |
146 |
CUT |
Clement Berardo | FRA |
4 |
74 |
72 |
146 |
CUT |
David Wakhu | KEN |
4 |
74 |
72 |
146 |
CUT |
Gregory Bourdy | FRA |
4 |
76 |
70 |
146 |
CUT |
Marcel Siem | GER |
4 |
71 |
75 |
146 |
CUT |
Nelson Simwa | KEN |
4 |
74 |
72 |
146 |
CUT |
Samuel Chege | KEN |
4 |
75 |
71 |
146 |
CUT |
Scott Vincent | ZWE |
4 |
73 |
73 |
146 |
CUT |
Sebastien Gros | FRA |
4 |
73 |
73 |
146 |
CUT |
Antoine Rozner | FRA |
5 |
71 |
76 |
147 |
CUT |
Chris Hanson | ENG |
5 |
75 |
72 |
147 |
CUT |
Christian Braeunig | GER |
5 |
75 |
72 |
147 |
CUT |
Daniel Gavins | ENG |
5 |
73 |
74 |
147 |
CUT |
David Opati | KEN |
5 |
76 |
71 |
147 |
CUT |
Jonathan Thomson | ENG |
5 |
73 |
74 |
147 |
CUT |
Laurie Canter | ENG |
5 |
73 |
74 |
147 |
CUT |
Philipp Mejow | GER |
5 |
71 |
76 |
147 |
CUT |
Seung-Su Han | KOR |
5 |
75 |
72 |
147 |
CUT |
Tony Omuli | KEN |
5 |
72 |
75 |
147 |
CUT |
Jin-Ho Choi | KOR |
6 |
72 |
76 |
148 |
CUT |
Phillip Kasozi | UGA |
6 |
77 |
71 |
148 |
CUT |
Ryan Evans | ENG |
6 |
75 |
73 |
148 |
CUT |
Craig Ross | SCO |
7 |
74 |
75 |
149 |
CUT |
Daniel Nduva | KEN |
7 |
76 |
73 |
149 |
CUT |
Marco Iten | SWE |
7 |
75 |
74 |
149 |
CUT |
Matthew Jordan | ENG |
7 |
76 |
73 |
149 |
CUT |
C.J Wangai | KEN |
8 |
79 |
71 |
150 |
CUT |
Emilio Cuartero | ESP |
8 |
72 |
78 |
150 |
CUT |
Ho-Sung Choi | KOR |
8 |
73 |
77 |
150 |
CUT |
Jamie Abbott | ENG |
8 |
72 |
78 |
150 |
CUT |
Deyen Lawson | AUS |
9 |
72 |
79 |
151 |
CUT |
Eduardo De La Riva | ESP |
9 |
76 |
75 |
151 |
CUT |
Erick Obura | KEN |
9 |
78 |
73 |
151 |
CUT |
Robin Dawson | IRL |
9 |
83 |
68 |
151 |
CUT |
Scott Fernandez | ESP |
9 |
78 |
73 |
151 |
CUT |
Ugo Coussaud | FRA |
9 |
75 |
76 |
151 |
CUT |
David Odhiambo | KEN |
10 |
74 |
78 |
152 |
CUT |
Duncan Stewart | SCO |
10 |
74 |
78 |
152 |
CUT |
Riz Charania | KEN |
12 |
78 |
76 |
154 |
CUT |
Edwin Mudanyi | KEN |
13 |
73 |
82 |
155 |
CUT |
Jacob Okello | KEN |
15 |
80 |
77 |
157 |
CUT |
Martin Wiegele | AUT |
15 |
77 |
80 |
157 |
CUT |
Alfred Nandwa | KEN |
16 |
79 |
79 |
158 |
CUT |
Kibugu Mutahi | KEN |
18 |
76 |
84 |
160 |
CUT |
Scott Gregory | ENG |
19 |
81 |
80 |
161 |
CUT |
Bradley Mogire | KEN |
21 |
77 |
86 |
163 |
CUT |
Mike Kisia | KEN |
22 |
83 |
81 |
164 |
RET |
Espen Kofstad | NOR |
Par |
71 |
- |
71 |
RET |
Masahiro Kawamura | JPN |
Par |
- |
- |
0 |