Maguire in the mix in Hawaii; Power move in Vegas; Lowry 8 back
Leona Maguire. Picture: Morgan Treacy/INPHO
LEONA MAGUIRE continued her magnificent start to the season when she finished with two birdies in her last five holes to lie seven shots behind leader Yuka Saso of the Phillippines in the LOTTE Championship in Hawaii.
The Slieve Russell National star went bogey-free for the second day running as she added a five-under 67 to her opening 68 to share 10th place on nine-under at Kapolei Golf Club on Oahu.
Stephanie Meadow made five birdies and three bogeys in a 70 to share 20th on seven-under.
Saso shot a second successive, eight-under 64 to lead by two shots on 16-under from Lydia Ko (64) and by five strokes from Spain’s Luna Sobron Galmes (64), Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim (65) and So Yeon Ryu (68) and American Nelly Korda (68).
Meanwhile, Shane Lowry showed signs of a Masters “hangover” but still birdied the last to card a rollercoaster 70 that left him eight shots off the lead in the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head.
The Open champion (34) made a flying start with birdies at his first two holes but he was far from his best from tee to green at Harbour Town as he mixed five birdies with five bogeys before knocking in an 11 footer for a closing birdie at the ninth.
The Clara man was tied for 48th with world No 1 Dustin Johnson and hopes to have regular caddie Brian Martin back on his bag for the Wells Fargo Championship in three weeks after South African Gary Matthews, Joaquin Niemann’s bagman, stepped in this week.
“The good news is that Bo is able to travel back to the States and he’ll team up with me at Quail Hollow,” Lowry said of Martin, who returned to Ireland on Monday to make vaccination arrangements and avoid hotel quarantine.
While he chipped in for birdie at the 18th to turn in two-under, Lowry came home in 37 to card a one-under 70 that left him eight shots behind Australian Cameron Smith, who fired a bogey-free, nine-under 62 for a one-shot lead over 2009 Open champion Stewart Cink with Graeme McDowell tied 99th after a two-over 73
Meanwhile, Séamus Power is looking to get hot on the PGA Tour again after opening with a two-under 70 to move into contention for the MGM Resorts Championship on the Korn Ferry Tour in freezing Las Vegas.
The West Waterford man (34) rattled in five birdies on the Sun Mountain Course at Paiute Golf Resort to sit inside the top ten, just four shots behind early leader Kevin Dougherty.
“It was cold and it was tough early this morning so I’m pretty pleased,” Power said after overcoming fast greens and bitterly cold early morning desert conditions.
“I had physical stuff that was hindering me for a while but that’s cleared up. I’m not playing on the PGA Tour this week obviously but I am hoping to play the Zürich Classic of New Orleans next week so I’m raring to go and looking forward to the rest of the season.”
On the European Tour, reigning Dubai Duty Free Irish Open champion John Catlin overcame freezing conditions to trail Spain’s Alejandro Cañizares by a shot after the opening round of the Austrian Golf Open.
The American (30) kept his gloves on for everything par his shots at a frigid Diamond Country Club near Vienna and chiselled out a, bogey-free 68 to share second spot with Martin Kaymer, Sweden’s Rikard Karlberg and South African Jacques Kruyswijk on four-under.
“The front nine was very, very cold,” said Caitlin, who won the Andalucía Masters at Valderrama before claiming the Irish Open in testing conditions at Galgorm Castle.
“I told my caddie 'I'm going to keep my hands in my gloves and have you hold the yardage book out and do my work that way'. That's abnormal for me, but I found that I needed to do that to keep my hands warm.
“Every single hole feels like a battle, so when that's the case you know that everyone else is probably going through it as well. I definitely knew it was playing challenging. Just tried to stay in the present and do the best I could.”
Cañizares (38), who is bidding to end a seven-year wait for his third European Tour win, putted well and made an eagle, four birdies and a single bogey for his 67 and the narrowest of leads.
As for the Irish, Greystones’ Paul Dunne was the best of the bunch in tied 46th after mixing an eagle three with two birdies, three bogeys and a double-bogey in a one-over 73.
Cormac Sharvin went out in an encouraging two-under but dropped five shots on the front nine and came home in 40 for a 75 and joint 71st as Gavin Moynihan shot 77 and Jonathan Caldwell struggled to an 80.
