September 29: It got crowded at the top as four players shared the lead at the halfway stage of the $125,000 Egyptian Golf Series 14.

On Tuesday at the Madinaty Golf Club, overnight leader India’s Pukhraj Singh Gill managed to turn things around with five birdies on his back nine in a round of three-under par 67, but that could only take him to nine-under 131. He was joined at that score by Australia’s Darcy Brereton (66, main picture), Korea’s Minhyeok Yang (64) and Thailand’s Tanapat Pichaikool (66).

Malaysia’s Marcus Lim and Korea’s Jaeil Kim both shot identical rounds of 67 to remain one behind the leaders at 132, while Australia’s Deyen Lawson (67), China’s Andi Xu (64), Frenchman Edgar Catherine (65) and England’s Ben Jones (67) were very much in the mix at seven-under total.

The lowest round of the day was by Welshman David Boote (63), who improved to tied 11th place at -6 after a bogey-free round that included seven birdies.

Minhyeok Yang of Korea. Picture by Ryan Tambalque/ADT.

Yang, who recently moved to Thailand with his father to be able to travel more comfortably within Asia, was bogey-free for his round, and hoped the wind would be up for the next two days.

“I played nicely today. My putting was very good, even though I missed a few wedge shots. My swing felt really nice, especially on the back nine,” said Yang, who is fifth in the Order of Merit and wants to seal his Asian Tour card for the next season with a good performance this week.

“I need to keep playing like this because I think the winning score will be around 22-under. It will be lower than last week because all the players were here last week as well, and they know the course conditions, are used to the wind, and can read the green better.

“I want more wind because this course is very wide.”

Like Yang, 32-year-old Brereton is also searching for his first professional win. He is currently 17th in the Order of Merit, and a good week will take him closer to the all-important top-10, which secures a graduation to the Asian Tour.

David Boote of Wales. Picture by Jason Butler/Asian Tour.

His only mistake on the day was a bogey on the 11th hole, but Brereton was pleased with how he played.

“It’s been a solid couple of days. Didn’t really find myself in too much trouble, so just looking forward to seeing what the next couple of days hold,” said the Melbourne resident.

“I think everything’s just complete. I’m hitting it pretty decent off the tee, hitting the right spots into the greens, holding a few putts between five and 15 feet and chipping it good. So, not much stress on my game. I think I found the rhythm of the course and would like to just keep doing what I’m doing.”

Gill, who shot a 64 on the opening day with three birdies and an eagle in his last six holes, needed to dig deep after a rough start, which saw him finish his front nine (back nine of the course) in two-over.

“I got off to quite a slow start today. I had a pretty easy opening couple of holes, but I was one-over through the first three. I then lost my ball on the 17th hole (his ninth) and made another bogey after making a birdie with my second ball,” said the 28-year-old.

“I think I came back quite well. I was able to stay patient and make five birdies in my closing nine holes. I felt the course conditions overall were slightly easier than yesterday, which is why I am not too surprised by the scores. Nevertheless, I’m quite grateful that I was able to recover from a rough front nine, and still stay in co-lead going into the last two days.”

The Egyptian Golf Series 14, as well as last week’s Egyptian Golf Series 13, are co-sanctioned by the Egyptian Golf Federation. The Arab Golf Federation and Golf Saudi are partnering the two tournaments.