Korean Hongtaek Kim stayed on course to claim his second title on the Asian Tour, and first on The International Series, after establishing the halfway lead in the International Series Japan today.

Having led after the first round with a seven-under-par 64, he added a 67 today here at Caledonian Golf Club for a strong tournament total of 11-under.

He has a one-shot lead over Japan’s Shugo Imahira and Karandeep Kochhar from India, both in with 65s – in the opening event of the year on The International Series, and the third stop on the Asian Tour.

Koreans Yubin Jang (63) and Younghan Song (68), Japan’s Tatsunori Shogenji (67) and Poom Saksansin (68) from Thailand, are another shot back.

Kim, winner of the GS Caltex Maekyung Open on the Asian Tour two years ago, managed to do what every great player is capable of at this level which was to work out what was wrong with his game after hitting a difficult patch.

Shugo Imahira.

He said: “I wasn’t hitting my shots very well early in the round, but I was able to figure out what I was doing wrong and make adjustments. After that, I was able to settle in and play much better.”

He made a bogey on the third to fall back into the chasing pack but his experience quickly kicked in as that was his only dropped shot. He made five birdies later to move into pole heading into the weekend, when rain has been forecast.

“With the rain, I probably won’t be able to get as much distance, so keeping the ball in the fairway will be very important,” he said. “From there, I’ll focus on staying patient, saving par when needed, and playing well around the greens.”

Imahira is one of the most decorated Japanese players in the field and showed that today when he eagled two of the par fives, the sixth, where he chipped, and the 18^th.

“This course gives us a lot of birdie chances, so I tried to take advantage when I could,” said Imahira – a 10-time champion on the Japan Golf Tour, and two-time winner of their Money List, in 2018 and 2019.

Karandeep Kochhar.

“I think I am in a good position. The event is taking place in Japan, playing in Japan gives me some advantage, so I expect to be in contention after the third round. One of my goals is to win international events, so I will do my best to make it happen.”

Kochhar has the distinction of being bogey free for two days, which is reflective of his strong start to the season. He is currently in sixth place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.

“I mean to stay bogey free I think everything has to be pretty much good, I would say,” said the Indian.

“I think though it’s my iron play majorly. And the putter, I feel like that’s the streaky one. I think that kind of dictates how I play, so I think the putter has cooperated so far quite well.”

The outstanding bogey-free 63 by Jang, who competed on the LIV Golf League last year, featured eight birdies and is the lowest round of the week so far.

He was unable to keep his playing privileges on the LIV Golf League but judging by today’s performance the experience has served him well.

“Last year didn’t go quite as I hoped, but I’m working hard to get back to that level and improve my performance this season,” he said.

Yubin Jang. 

“It’s still early in the season, so I’m not focusing too much on specific outcomes yet. I just want to keep improving and see where my game takes me.”

India’s Jeev Milkha Singh, a two-time Asian Tour Order of Merit winner, showed his class today by making his first cut on the Asian Tour since 2024.

The 54-year-old, who now plays mainly on the Senior Tours, returned a 69 to finish on the one under par cutline.

Surprisingly, Richard T. Lee’s remarkable run of 25 consecutive cuts made on the Asian Tour since 2023 finally came to an end. He came in with a 73 to finish even. The Canadian hit global headlines last month when he was defeated by American Bryson DeChambeau in a play-off at LIV Golf Singapore. A hectic travel schedule this season playing the LIV Golf League no doubt catching up with him this week.

Pictures by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.