He’s playing his way closer to a DP World Tour card, and JC Ritchie’s second round of four-under-par 68 on Friday in the Challenge Tour’s Hainan Open took him to the top of the leaderboard at the halfway mark.
His performance projects him to jump 36 places on the Road to Mallorca rankings with one tournament to go ahead of the Challenge Tour Grand Final. That would be 25th place, and would leave him all to play for at that final event, with the top 20 places after that winning their DP World Tour playing privileges.
After his bogey-free 64 start in the first round, his second round was a little adventurous: It included an eagle, five birdies, a bogey and a double-bogey, but it left him in a three-way share of the top of the leaderboard with Niklas Lemke of Sweden and Oliver Lindell of Finland.
Ritchie is relishing the challenge ahead after he hauled himself into contention for his fifth Challenge Tour title. “I’ve been playing decent golf for the last six to seven months,” he said. “But I just haven’t really got anything done and put some good scores together. I felt good the last couple of months and I’m feeling confident coming into this week. I have always played well under pressure and I’ve got three events to show what I’ve got.”
Wilco Nienaber, with whom Ritchie and Lemke shared the first-round lead, had a second round of three-under-par 69 to be one stroke off the pace in a share of fourth place.
Deon Germishuys had a four-under 68 to climb into a share of 30th on six-under, whike Justin Walters had a one-under 71, and, at three-under, made the cut on the number in a share of 52nd..
Louis Albertse and Bryce Easton missed the cut.
