BANGKOK: One of the best former amateur golfers in the world is leading after two rounds of the LIV Golf tournament in Thailand.
Ex-Oklahoma State player Eugenio Chacarra turned professional to play on the LIV series. The two-time first-team All-American was No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking before he signed a three-year contract with the Saudi-backed LIV tour.
On Saturday he birdied three of his first five holes and eagled his sixth on the way to a 9-under 63 and a five-stroke lead after two rounds of the 54-hole event.
The Spanish player, one of the co-leaders after the first round, had a 36-hole total of 16-under 128 on the newly opened Stonehill Golf Club course north of Bangkok.
There was a four-way tie for second. First-round co-leader Richard Bland (68), Sihwan Kim (66), Harold Varner III (66) and Patrick Reed (65) were at 11 under.
Branden Grace, one of the first-round leaders with Chacarra and Bland, withdrew after three holes Saturday with an undisclosed injury.
“The conditions are great and the course is unbelievable,†Chacarra said. “But I think the key was I went back to see what I was doing in college because I was working so good and I didn’t do as good the first four weeks as a pro, and it was just try to have fun and then play to not make bogeys.
“I’m actually hitting it pretty good, but I’m playing smart and I’m having fun.â€
It’s the first time LIV Golf is being played outside the US since its inaugural event in early June near London.
