Donald takes charge at Sun City

Luke Donald’s second round birdie blitz saw him take a two-shot lead at the Nedbank Challenge on Friday.
The Englishman followed up his opening-round 71 with a sparkling 63 that featured an incredible nine birdies – including six on the front nine – in a bogey-free round to take his total to 10 under par.
Donald came close to birdying the last as well, which would have given him the new course record, but he’ll certainly settle for what he did manage to achieve.
“It’s been a while since I’ve gone really low,” said the 36-year-old. “I’ve been seeing some signs of a lot of improvement in the last few weeks and some lower rounds in the mid to high 60s but obviously nine birdies around this place is a great round and something I was very pleased with.
“I felt very in control. It’s been a while since I felt like that. It was nice to play a solid round.”
Donald also had an unusual encounter on the 13th, where he had to dodge a charging baboon.
“We were walking up 13, saw one hiding in the tree, and got to my ball and suddenly Shane said, ‘Watch out!’
“And I turned around and the thing is galloping towards me. I jumped out of the way. My facial expression I’m sure was caught on camera and probably on the internet already by now. It gave me a little bit of a fright as he strolled right by me.”
Overnight leader Ross Fisher’s 70 meant he slipped into second place, two shots off the lead. Fisher’s round featured three birdies and an eagle, but also a bogey and a nasty double-bogey at the short 12th.
“I am a little bit disappointed to shoot two under,” he said. “It’s a tough golf course. I don’t feel like I played probably as solid as yesterday. I didn’t hit it as good off the tee. I still felt like I played pretty solid.”
When asked about Donald’s performance, Fisher added: “I think any golf course anywhere, there’s always a low score out there. But, you’ve got to go out and do it. So hats off to Luke. He obviously played fantastically well today.”
Frenchman Alexander Levy lies in third place on six under after a two-under 70, while another Englishman, Danny Willett, is in fourth a further shot back after a 68.
Latest
-
PGA Championship
Tiger Woods falls away at US PGA Championship after nightmare third round
The 15-time major winner had only made the cut with a shot to spare.
-
PGA Championship
Tyrrell Hatton criticises state of greens at Southern Hills after exit
The 30-year-old had branded Augusta National ‘unfair at times’ after closing rounds of 79 and 80 in last month’s Masters.
-
PGA Championship
History with Will Zalatoris in push for first major title at US PGA Championship
The American was runner-up in the 2021 Masters and had recorded four top-10 finishes in his seven major appearances before this week.
-
PGA Championship
Rory McIlroy hails ‘ultimate pro’ Tiger Woods for making halfway cut at US PGA
McIlroy could only add a second round of 71 to his opening 65 at Southern Hills.
-
PGA Championship
Tiger Woods survives halfway cut to keep US PGA hopes alive
Woods looked set for an early exit following a double bogey on the 11th hole of his second round.
-
PGA Championship
Matt Fitzpatrick in contention at Southern Hills despite being no fan of course
Fitzpatrick added a second-round 69 to his opening 68.
-
PGA Championship
Justin Thomas overcomes testing conditions to set clubhouse target at US PGA
Thomas carded a second-consecutive 67 at Southern Hills for a halfway total of 134, six under par.
-
PGA Championship
Rory McIlroy still the man to beat amid challenging conditions in Tulsa
With the weather due to improve as the day wore on, McIlroy’s tee time had the potential to prove significantly advantageous.
-
PGA Championship
Rory McIlroy on top but not getting ahead of himself at US PGA Championship
The Northern Irishman carded seven birdies and two bogeys in an opening 65 to record his lowest round in a major since the 2011 US Open.
-
News
UPS delivers a sponsorship setback to Lee Westwood
The company has ended its deal in an apparent response to Westwood’s involvement with a series of Saudi-backed events.