George Coetzee in action on the second day of the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters at the Doha Golf Club yesterday.
Doha: France’s Mike Lorenzo-Vera and South African pair of Justin Harding and George Coetzee all made it back to back rounds of 68 to share the lead on the second day of the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters at the Doha Golf Club here yesterday.
A rejuvenated Lorenzo-Vera will be aiming to stop the South African duo and claim a first French victory in Qatar.
The 34-year-old Frenchman has brought a new mental attitude to Doha as he seeks his first European Tour title in 178 events and he set the target at eight under after going out in the very first group of the day.
Harding - also seeking a maiden victory - and four time winner Coetzee then reined him in during the afternoon to sit a shot ahead of another South African in Erik van Rooyen, Spaniard Adri Arnaus, Japanese Masahiro Kawamura and England’s Oliver Wilson.
Lorenzo-Vera has been working with coach Justin Parsons and a sports psychologist, and the teamwork appears to be bearing fruit in the Middle East.
“It was different to yesterday,” he said. “I had a lack of energy in the middle of the round. I was really happy with how I handled it and came into the round after that.”
Coetzee is making his seventh consecutive appearance at the event having finished second in 2013 and achieved three further top tens - including last season.
“I’m just happy to be playing some better golf,” he said.
0“I guess I made a bit of a mind switch and started focusing a little bit more on what’s going on at the moment instead of where I want to be in a couple of years.
“I was in contention seven years go and I still haven’t won this thing so I guess I don’t know the magic recipe but I’ll be looking for it over the weekend.”
Harding finished third on the Asian Tour last season and has three top tens in 2019.
“Each day is its own puzzle,” he said.
“You’ve got to go sort it out, you can’t go out there thinking you’re going to play well, that’s certainly not the case.
“I’ve obviously got a bit of confidence and that’s been built up through time and through some nice performances.”
Australia’s Deyen Lawson made his second hole-in-one of the season on the 17th en route to a 68 that left him in a group of eight players at six under, with just five shots separating the top 48.
Swedes Kristoffer Broberg and Anton Karlsson, Belgian duo Nicolas Colsaerts and Thomas Detry, Spaniard Nacho Elvira, South African Jacques Kruyswijk and Scot Richie Ramsay were alongside Lawson two shots off the lead.
