A three-under par 69 at Malaysia’s Saujana Country Club gave Belgium’s Thomas Pieters a one-shot lead at the Maybank Championship with two rounds to go. Picture by GETTY IMAGES

BELGIUM’S Thomas Pieters will take a one-shot lead into the weekend at the Maybank Championship after the golf course showed its teeth on Friday.

The big-hitting Belgian carded four birdies and a single bogey in his second round at Saujana Golf and Country Club to move to eight-under par.

Pieters said: “I struggled off the tee early on, at the end it was a lot better. It didn’t feel like a good day to me, I made the best of what I had.

“I gave myself a lot of chances but I couldn’t seem to get the ball in the hole.

“I birdied 16, the par three, it was a nice putt. But other than that I felt like I was missing putts all over.

“I tried not to over read the putt on 16. When you miss a couple of putts you try to read to much into it. I just put it down, looked once, and gave it a go.”

Apart from his struggle on the greens, the main talkling point of the week has been about Pieters unusual golf bag – which lacks a sponsor.

Pieters has turned it into an advertisement and revealed: “It was my idea.

“My brother has a creative company, but it was actually my idea. I thought, why not, it’s empty. I thought it was quite funny, and it got picked up this week. I think it was Jamie Gough that tweeted and a few people were talking about it.

“If Eddie Pepperell wants to put his face on it, I will happily take it.”

It had seemed Pieters and his fellow challengers might be fighting for second rather than top spot when overnight co-leader Nacho Elvira opened up a four-stroke lead over the chasing pack early in the afternoon.

But as the wind picked up, the Spaniard dropped three shots in two holes on the back nine to slip to seven-under, where he sits alongside Indonesia’s Danny Masrin in a tie for second place.

Nacho said: “I still feel like I’m playing solid. I struggled a bit on 14, I three-putted on 13. I had a really easy birdie chance then I three putted.

“Fourteen is a really tough hole, everybody knows it. The pin was tucked, I had a hard chip, anyway, double there and then three putted the next hole.

“Overall I’m happy. I’m hitting the ball fine, I’m putting myself in position to find the pins and I’m looking forward to the weekend.

“The tee shots feel like a dream. To be honest I’m picking up a little bit of confidence as the season goes on. I’m happy the way I’m hitting it right now.”

It’s a first appearance at this event – which is co-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tours – for four-time Major winner Ernie Els.

And after a second round 70 he sits at six-under alongside fellow South African Dean Burmester, American pair David Lipsky and Paul Peterson, Jazz Janewattananond, from Thailand, Germany’s Maximilian Kieffer and Australian Lucas Herbert.

Els said: “I think scoring conditions are a bit tougher than last year. I’ve never played here before but from what I’ve heard the guys usually make a lot of birdies.

“With the new greens the ball is releasing a bit and I kind of like that.  The last four years have been a real struggle, so I’m really happy that I’m playing good golf again.

“My body feels good and the ball striking is there now. On the greens I’m starting to feel really comfortable, so that means I can have a chance again to play with these guys.

“That’s what I want, to feel like I can have a chance playing Saturdays and Sundays and that’s kind of my goal.

“I’ve got to keep doing what I’m doing and eliminate the little mistakes.

“The one on 17 wasn’t very good. Got to try to get into the 60s and if you’re within three or four going into Sunday you’ve got a chance.

“Shubhankar showed that last year, coming out of the pack and winning.”

German Keiffer said: “I played really good today tee-to-green, hit a couple of wedges really close. I even had a few mid-range putts that just burned the edges, so really good.

“I played well here last year, played OK two years ago. You don’t need to be really straight off the tee but if you hit a wild one then it’s gone so that kind of suits me.

“The wind direction suits me better than last year because I can’t quite reach the par fives this year. The wedge game was very good today, so that was the key.

“I’m very happy with the way I’m playing. Since I started working with my new coach (Ian Holloway) last year, I’ve been steadily getting better.

“Just focus on the process, that’s all you can do, and it’s been working for me.”

•For live scoring in the third round of the Maybank Championship click here.

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Australia’s Marcus Fraser who shot a seven-under par 65 at Kuala Lumpur’s Saujana Golf and Country Club, to share the lead at the Maybank Championship with Spaniard Nacho Elvira. Picture by GETTY IMAGES

NACHO Elvira and former champion Marcus Fraser lead the way at the end of the first day of the Maybank Championship, following a remarkable morning of scoring at Kuala Lumpur’s Saujana Golf and County Club.

Australian Fraser, who won the first staging of the tournament in 2016 to seal his third European Tour title, and Spain’s four-time Challenge Tour winner Elvira, each carded eight birdies and a single bogey to get to seven-under par in Malaysia, on Thursday.

Fraser said: “I’ve been playing well having a hit at home but I haven’t played a whole lot of competitive golf.

“It was nice to go out and play well in a great tournament. It’s been a good day. I played steady all day and putted really well.

“The new greens here, well they’ve done a great job. Unfortunately, by no fault of their own, they were diseased and they lost them last year.

“Now they have rebuilt them and they are fantastic.  Unbelievable to be able to turn them around in 12 months.

“In the practice round the course was firm and bouncy and they have small undulating greens.

“With that combination you would think the scoring wouldn’t be as good. But it’s a great surface to putt on, not too much grain in the greens.”

Joint leader Elvira was pleased to fnally shoot a low number around Saujana. “To be honest seven-under is always good. With my record here not being too great, 65 is very good.

“It’s tough, it’s really humid. It’s not as hot in the morning but it’s really humid so it’s tough to stay hydrated.

“My caddie told me today that I hit 12 fairways. I have been hitting my irons good and putting great, I just needed to put the ball in play.

“I wasn’t able to do that the first few weeks (of the season) but I think I managed to do that in Qatar and also today.

“I’m happy the way things are going, happy to be turning around my golf game a little bit. We’ll see where that gets me.”

It had looked as though the early leaders efforts would be eclipsed when Angelo Que took full advantage of the newly-rebuilt greens at the Kuala Lumpur venue to make nine birdies and no bogeys in his opening 11 holes.

But the Filipino made back-to-back double bogeys at the 15th and 16th holes to fall from the top of the leaderboard.

Que finished his round with a birdie at the 18th to join Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond and Austrian Matthias Schwab in a tie for third, a single shot behind the leaders on six under par.

Que said: “I thought I was dreaming when I got to nine-under after 11 holes. But these things happen especially when you play well.

“You try not to think too much and get ahead of yourself by ignoring it and keep playing. But it sorts of plays on your mind too.

“I got unlucky on 15 where I hit the fairway but didn’t have a shot at the green.

“I got an unlucky lie and didn’t make up and down. It was the same story on the next hole.

“These things happen but lucky I still managed to make 10 birdies today. So, six-under is always a good score. I started off with a birdie and ended off with a birdie. So that’s nice.”

Belgian Thomas Pieters is another stroke back after his opening round of 67, one ahead of eight players at four-under, including four-time Major Champion Ernie Els, and his fellow South Africans Dean Burmester and Brandon Stone.

There is then a group of 11 players at three-under, while European Ryder Cup Captain Padraig Harrington made a steady return to action after four months out with a wrist injury, shooting a first round 70 to sit alongside 14 other players at two under par.

Harrington, who is returning after a broken bone in his wrist delayed his start ot the season, said: “I actually really enjoyed my day. I wish I was like that every day.

“Four months off, I was buzzing out there, really enjoying the battle of getting it done. I struggled so badly off the tee, so it was an interesting contest for me.

“There is substantial difference between playing a practice round and playing with a card in your hand.

“I really struggled with my swing but I haven’t forgotten how to play golf. I managed my way around the golf course.

“I worked hard for the score. Overall 70 is a well worked score.”

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