James Byrne five clear in Malaysia

BANCHORY’S James Byrne is on course for a second victory of the season on the Asian Development Tour after opening up a five-stroke lead with two rounds to go in the Langkawi Masters in Malaysia.

Bidding for his third success overall in the paid ranks – he won the Northern Open at Meldrum House last year before claiming the Rahman Putra Masters on an earlier visit to Malaysia this season – Byrne followed up an opening 64 with an equally impressive 65.

Over two days at the Gunung Raya Golf Resort, the big-hitting 23-year-old has bagged an impressive 17 birdies but, even with a handy lead over Canadian Lindsay Reynolds, Byrne is taking nothing for granted over the final two rounds. “I’m just focusing and playing one shot at a time,” insisted the former Walker Cup player, who is competing on the Asian Tour for the second successive season and also has a card for the 
Sunshine Tour in South Africa.

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“I think my scores reflect how focussed and relaxed I’m. When you are not playing well, you tend to get stressed out and anxious. Being stress-free is definitely the key to why I’ve been playing so well.”

The Scot struggled off the tee in his second round but made amends with a hot putter. “It was a bad ball-striking day and I missed a lot of fairways, but I putted really well,” he added. “Evidently you can make a lot of birdies and if I stay in the process then I think I can hit another couple of low rounds.”