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Siddikur in prime position at Brunei Open

Unheralded Siddikur of Bangladesh gave himself a shot at a historic victory after taking a two-shot halfway lead at the ` on Friday.

Siddikur, who is the first Bangladeshi to play on the Asian Tour, posted a four-under-par 67 for his career’s best two-day total of 11-under-par 131 at the majestic Empire Hotel and Country Club.

Overnight leader Thammanoon Srirot of Thailand slipped to tied second place after a 71 for a 133 total alongside Australian Adam Groom, who returned a 68 at the 300,000-dollar full field Asian Tour tournament.

Juvic Pagunsan of the Philippines, Malaysia’s Ben Leong and South African Jbe Kruger are a further stroke back on 134.

India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar, last year’s runner-up in Brunei, scored the third hole-in-one of the tournament on the 14^th hole after his five iron tee shot trickled into the hole. He closed with a 68 for a 137 total.

Siddikur, who grew up as a ball boy in Dhaka and fashioned his first club with a seven iron head on a metal rod, posted a flawless round with four birdies but was disappointed with his putting.

He said his confidence has soared since securing his first top-10 on the Asian Tour at the Queen’s Cup in Thailand in June.

“I’m very happy and excited with my total score as this is the first time I have been 11-under-par after the second round,” said Siddikur.

“I was struggling a bit with my short putts because I found it tough to read the lines... If I had managed to get my putter working, I would have had a better score. Overall it was a good round and I’m looking forward to the weekend,” added the 25-year-old.

Thammanoon, a five-time Asian Tour winner, posted two birdies in the first three holes but could not keep his momentum going before closing with bogeys on the seventh and eighth holes.