Filippi holds all the aces at Fancourt
Milnerton junior Luca Filippi continued to stamp his dominance on the inaugural Dimension Data Junior Open with yet another impressive run at Fancourt Country Club on Thursday.
Filippi opened his account with a five-under-par 67 at the Outeniqua course and well raced clear of the opposition with a four under 69 at the challenging Links to lead at nine-under-par 136.
The 16-year-old Province golfer carry an almost insurmountable advantage into Friday’s final round at the Montagu course.
Marco Steyn carded a 72 and is his closest challenger, but the Central Gauteng golfer lags eight strokes off the pace.
Southern Cape duo Jovan Rebula and Franklin Manchest are a further stroke adrift on even-par after the former shot 75 and the latter registered a 77.
Filippi was two under through six holes after birdies at one, two and four, but turned level after bogeys at seven and eight.
The Ernie Els and Fancourt Foundation player got it back to two under with a pair of gains at 12 and 13 and racked up two more birdies at 16 and 18 coming down the stretch.
Steyn was four-for-four in birdies and bogeys, while Rebula countered five bogeys with three birdies. Manchest broke up strings of straight pars with a double bogey at the fifth and further drops at 14 and 18.
Further down the leaderboard, Keelan van Wyk from Central Gauteng, Wilco Nienaber from Free State, Gauteng North’s Cliffie Thompson and Martin Vorster from Southern Cape tied for fifth on one over 146.
Van Wyk holed out for an eagle at 13 en route to a 72 and fellow EEFF member Thompson mixed four bogeys with three birdies for a 74.
Nienaber expunged a double bogey at 13 with back-to-back birdies at 16 and 17 for a 73, while 14-year-old Vorster from the Louis Oosthuizen Academy showed some steely resolve after making nine at the par-five 13th and bogey at 14 to finish with a pair of birdies and two pars for a 75.
SA number one ranked junior Dylan Naidoo was well down the leaderboard after an opening 74 and turned four over after bogey at the first and a triple at the ninth, but the double Nomads SA Boys champion rallied with three birdies for a 74 to tie for ninth at three over.
SECOND ROUND LEADERBOARD – TOP 10
136 Luca Filippi 67 69
144 Marco Steyn 72 72
145 Jovan Rebula 70 75; Franklin Manchest 68 77
146 Keelan van Wyk 74 72; Wilco Nienaber 73 73; Clifford Thompson 72 74; Martin Vorster 71 7
148 Willie Olivier 75 73; Dylan Naidoo 74 74; Steven Raath 73 75; Herman Loubser 72 76; Dawid Opperman 72 76; Keegan Mclachlan 68 80
Written and released by Lali Stander on behalf of the South African Golf Association.