Taichi Kho began the day wondering if he should play at all – but ended it with the lowest round of his career and a six-shot lead at the Asian Games.
The Hong Kong golfer carded a scarcely believable 12-under-par 60 at the Westlake International Golf and Country Club on Friday, moving to 22 under after two rounds in the men’s individual tournament.
Overnight leader Jang Yu-bin shot a 67 to move to 16 under, with Chinese Taipei’s Hung Chien-yao leaping seven spots up the leader board with a nine-under round of 63 to sit on alongside the South Korean amateur in a tie for second.
“I struggled bit with my body today, I had a bit of an issue with my neck leading into the round and I was thinking of not playing, but obviously it’s a team sport this week, so I’m glad I pulled through,” Kho said.
“The physios from Hong Kong are really good at their job, so I was able to get through and mentally it was really nice to feel some adrenaline down the stretch, two of the best rounds I’ve ever had in my life back-to-back.”
Despite an eagle on the par-five second hole, Kho said the highlight of his second bogey-free round of the week was a birdie on the par-four 18th, where he hit his approach from a fairway bunker to within six feet of the flag.
The 22-year-old’s teammates Matthew Cheung and Jason Hak were on the move too. Cheung’s 66 moved him to nine under for the tournament, while Hak’s 68 left him two shots further back.
The trio combined for a total of 38 under, moving them into the silver medal place for the team event. Terrance Ng missed the cut at four over for his two rounds.
South Korea maintained their position at the top of the leader board in the team event, with Japan third.
“Being in the lead, it doesn’t make that big of a difference, we’re only 36 holes into a 72-hole tournament, so it’s like playing the front nine,” Kho said. “I had a good front nine, but there’s still a lot of golf left to be played, so strategy doesn’t change, my outlook on the tournament doesn’t change, [I’m] just here to progress myself and progress here with the team together, that’s the main goal.”
In the women’s tournament, Sophie Han and Arianna Lau had matching rounds for the second day, both shooting 70 to move to three under for the week.
Teammate Tiffany Chan also shot a 70 to move to one under, but missed the cut.
The round of the day belonged to Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who carded a seven-under 65 to move to 12 under, one shot ahead of China’s Yin Ruoning and India’s Aditi Ashock in second.
With Lin Xiyu also weighing in, China took a narrow one-stroke lead in the team event on 21 under, with Thailand second and India back in third on 16 under.
Hong Kong’s six-under total leaves them in a tie with Singapore for seventh.