The second round at the 30th Volvo China Open in Shanghai delivered a thriller as the Chinese mainland's Li Haotong tore through the course with an eight-under 63. His surge catapulted him to 10-under-par, tying Finland's Tapio Pulkkanen and Spain's Eugenio Chacarra at the summit.
Li, starting seven shots off the overnight lead, wasted no time. He birdied four straight holes after turning on the back nine, then added two more on the front. An eagle at the par-5 third hole and a closing par at nine sealed his stunning round.
Overnight leader Pulkkanen couldn’t match his opening 62 but still signed for a one-under 70. He fought back from early bogeys, clutching a par save at the tricky 10th to stay in the mix.
Chacarra heated up with four consecutive birdies from the fourth, capped by a pin-high approach at seven. The Spaniard, who won the Indian Open last month, added another birdie at 16 to lock himself in a three-way tie.
Veteran Wu Ashun, the first Chinese mainland player to win this event 10 years ago, carded a birdie at 11 to reach 4-under-par, six shots off the pace. As the competition heads into the weekend, all eyes will be on Shanghai’s dynamic trio atop the leaderboard.
Reference(s):
China's Li storms back into contention on day two of Volvo China Open
cgtn.com
