De Los Santos fights back as Sato holds clubhouse lead

Justin De Los Santos of the Philippines fought back into contention as overnight leader Taihei Sato impressed again with a five-under-par 66 to grab the clubhouse lead at the weather-disrupted Japan Players Championship by Sato Shokuhin.

Sato’s second round efforts moved him to 13-under-par 131 total, two shots clear of Katsumasa Miyamoto, who signed for a 68 before play was suspended for the day due to fading light.

Playing in the earlier flights, De Los Santos shrugged off the delayed start due to the heavy fog to shoot a fine 66 and trail Sato by six shots.

De Los Santos stormed off the blocks quickly with birdies on the first, fourth, sixth and eighth holes before continuing his assault by gaining three more shots over the first four holes after the turn to go seven-under for the day.

However, he fell short of finishing the day bogey-free after dropping a bogey at the par-four 18th.

De Los Santos, who has two top-10 finishes this season, including a solo fourth at the Mizuno Open, said an improved short game made all the difference after a modest opening 71.

“Obviously, the weather was very different today, and I was able to stick to my original game plan better,” said the Filipino as he finished in a share of 13th place that included defending champion Naoyuki Kataoka (70).

“I struggled the first half of yesterday primarily because I wasn’t really hitting fairways. Luckily my putting has been pretty good aside from the occasional three-putt.

“That and finding some more fairways, I feel, were big factors.”

De Los Santos added that he would not dwell on one stroke he lost at the last.

“Of course, I was a little upset, but there’s a lot of golf to be played still, so I just need to move on and focus on tomorrow,” he said.

Sato picked up where he left off yesterday to enjoy a fast start from the 10th tee with a pair of birdies in his first two holes of the day.

He gained further strokes on holes 16 and 18 before stretching his lead with a hat-trick of birdies from the fifth hole.

Unfortunately, he was pegged back by a double bogey on eight, which would otherwise put him in a more commanding position.

Sato said the extra hours he spent practising during the two-hour delay did the trick for him.

“I made the most of the time I had from the postponement. Instead of going back to the clubhouse, I took the opportunity to practice throughout the delay,” he said.

“I also talked to caddies and players.

“I think my confidence has grown after two good rounds, and I’m definitely looking to contend at the weekend.”