Williamson shoots 66 to go top at Blue Valley

Andrew Williamson says while he wasn’t in control of many situations during his second round of the Altron Big Easy Tour event at Blue Valley Golf Estate, on Wednesday, he was happy to shoot a 66 which placed him atop the leaderboard ahead of the final round.

On nine-under-par for the tournament and a stroke clear of the field, and thanks to a near-perfect six-under 66 on day two, Williamson knows he has a real chance of walking off the course a champion on Thursday.

He was playing solid golf on day two and were it not for the bogey he made on 15, his would have been a blemish-free round.

“You know, when we walked off the ninth green, I told Connor (Mackenzie) that sometimes you are not in control. There’s just a wave that you catch and I kind of just rode the wave today,” said Williamson.

“I just did my thing. I just let things happen and didn’t try to control too much and the result was a really solid day out. I’m happy with how I played and my game felt good. I did struggle around the greens in some instances but luckily, I hit a few greens so I didn’t have to worry too much about getting up and down too much.”

Williamson started the second round from the 10^th tee and made three straight pars as he sought to avoid any big number early on in the day. His patience was rewarded with a birdie on his fourth but those gains were taken from, no thanks to the drop he made on the par-three 15^th, his sixth hole of the day. Williamson made up for the drop with a birdie just before the turn.

That birdie proved to be the first of four, one after the other, and from there on, the Irene Golf Club player didn’t make any more mistakes. He birdied his 16^th, made par on 17 and then closed off with another birdie to get himself into contention.

“There were quite a few key moments which really kept me in the round today,” Williams added. “On the first, which was my 10^th hole, I hit a really nice approach there; to about three feet. I made a birdie there and then on the second hole, I didn’t hit a really good shot. But, I made a long putt to get to three under for the round and then on the fourth, I made another great putt.”

Williamson knows, however, that there is still a lot of golf to be played and, with as many challengers as there will be, patience will be key. LB Boshoff leads the chasing pack on eight-under while Caylum Boon’s 69 helped to a total of seven-under with 18 holes to play.

“I have not been in this situation too many times but I have learnt from that one experience I have had,” said Williamson, noting the pressure that comes with being where he is currently – the top. “I think it’s a privilege to be in this position because this is what we play for; why we put in the work and the hours. We want to win golf tournaments. And I think the pressure that comes with that is also a privilege.”

Last week’s winner, Travis Ladner, Dylan O’Leary, Xander Basson, Stals Swart and Samuel Simpson are only three back and either one will fancy their chances at glory on Thursday.

Harry Konig, Christopher Long and overnight leader, Slade Pickering tie the ninth spot on five-under-par.