Niall Kearney finds himself in the hunt going into the final round of the Clutch Pro Tour’s Caversham event on the outskirts of Reading in southern England.
Having opened with a one-under 71 that saw him start round two with just a shot to spare over those sitting just above the provisional cutline, he wasn’t long in making forward strides as he made birdie on both of his opening holes (10 and 11) and then followed up with another back-to-back brace on 13 and 14, and a two at the par-3 17th saw him reach the turn in five-under.
The front side may not have been quite as spectacular, but the pattern was consistent as he birdied the first, parred the next three, birdied the fifth, parred the next three and birdied the ninth to sign for an eight-under 64 that lifts him to -9 overall and a tie for fourth, just five back.
Conor O’Rourke was the leading Irish contender on day one, but a two-over 74 sees him slip to a tie for 22nd alongside Liam Grehan who was four shots better on the day, and Daniel Brennan’s second successive 71 was enough to see him through with a shot to spare.
Unfortunately for John Ross Galbraith, back-to-back 72s sees him miss the cut by the minimum at level-par, one ahead of Rowan Lester who shot a second-round 74.
Holywood duo Rory Williamson and Scott Montgomery and Naas’ Robert Brazill also missed the cut.
John Gough continues to lead the way after following up his incredible 10-under opening round with a four-under 68 on day two and he enjoys a three-shot lead over David Langley who in turn is one ahead of Jake Burnage.