Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond backed up his opening-round nine-under-par 63 with a 69 today to take the lead mid-way through Friday, on 12-under, here at the BNI Indonesian Masters at Royale Jakarta Golf Club.

India’s Rashid Khan and Kieran Vincent from Zimbabwe are joint second, two strokes back, after they both shot their second successive 67s – in the US$2 million Asian Tour event that is part of The International Series.

Chinese-Taipei’s Chang Wei-lun fired a 66 and is a shot further back with Angelo Que from the Philippines, after a 69.

Canadian Richard T. Lee, the overnight leader following a 62, is playing in the afternoon session.

Rashid Khan. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.

Jazz triumphed in this event in 2019 – the year he won four-times on the Asian Tour and claimed the Order of Merit title – and looks to have found some form entering the weekend after a far from satisfactory season.

He finished joint 12^th in the International Series Thailand last week for his best result of the season and feels he has been helped in his cause by switching to a broomstick putter.

“So last week, I was playing a Pro-Am with my playing partner,” explained Jazz, “and I was using a short putter on the practice round and on the Pro-Am day. And one of the amateurs, who is actually my friend, was using a broomstick putter and I had a little match with him, and I couldn’t hole any putts that day.

“We got three holes to go, and I just took his putter, and I putted with it for like the last three holes, and I’m like, maybe I need to go back to a broomstick. And that’s how I changed and how I got my best finish of the year, so I have to say thanks to him.”

Khan has been enduring one of his worst seasons but said something clicked with his swing two weeks ago at the Black Mountain Championship.

“I have been really struggling this year,’ said the Indian, a two-time winner on the Asian Tour but a decade ago, when he won the SAIL-SBI Open and the Chiangmai Golf Classic in the same season.

Kieran Vincent. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.

“I was looking for something I could play with on the golf course. I was looking for something and it finally clicked when I was playing Black Mountain. After that it was all good.

“There were a lot of things I was working on so I can’t really say. I wasn’t holding the grip properly; I couldn’t feel my club on the backswing. I am now really surprised how well I am hitting the ball. Sometimes you make a few changes, they click, and you start playing well.”

He spent last week practicing in Bangkok as he forgot to enter the International Series Thailand, which was also the case for the Black Mountain Championship but luckily he received an invite, although he missed the cut.

Defending champion Gaganjeet Bhullar from India returned a 71 and is three under, with the halfway cut looking like being two under.