May 9: Lucas Herbert protected his overnight lead despite a wobble in the middle of his second round, carding a two-under-par 69 to reach 11-under at the halfway stage of the $2 million International Series Japan presented by Moutai.

The 29-year-old Australian dashed off the blocks on Friday morning, making two birdies in his first two holes. He then added another on the 14th, his fifth hole of the day, to reach 12-under. However, a sprayed drive on the 15th led to a double bogey, followed by a brace of bogeys on the next two. He responded with five birdies over the next 10 holes for a round of 69.

At 11-under, Herbert was one ahead of the chasing pack led by Japan’s Shunya Takeyasu (68) and Korea’s Younghan Song (67). Takeyasu made just one bogey in difficult afternoon playing conditions, while Song carded a bogey-free four-under-par 67 as both moved to 10-under.

Another player who took advantage of the calmer morning conditions at the par-71 Caledonian Golf Club was Japan’s Yuta Sugiura (67). A second consecutive four-under round moved him to eight-under par total, and three behind the leader, where he was joined by South Africa’s Ian Snyman (66).

Younghan Song of Korea. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

Herbert, who matched the course record at Caledonian Golf Club in Thursday’s opening round with a 62, took solace in the fact that he made more birdies in his second round.

“Obviously, a bit up and down. It feels like a bit of a missed opportunity to get off to such a good start there, and not really capitalising on it. I felt like I could have stretched the lead out and run away a little bit and put some ground between me and the field,” said Herbert, a four-time winner on major tours across the globe.

“But I’m still leading. I still fought back nicely and made some good putts there later in the round to make some birdies. So, yeah…it’s a little bit frustrating to only shoot two-under, but I made eight birdies today. I think I made seven birdies and an eagle yesterday. So, the good stuff is there. I just need to clean up some of the bad ones and I’ll be fine.”

Song, who made a hole-in-one yesterday, may not have been as spectacular in his second round, but he was solid with two birdies on either half of his round.

“My shots were solid today, so I was able to create more birdie opportunities compared to yesterday,” said the 33-year-old, a winner of the 2016 SMBC Singapore Open, which was co-sanctioned by the Asian and Japan Golf Tours.

Shunya Takeyasu of Japan. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

“This is my third tournament of the year, and I usually get better as I play more events. But this course is tough – it’s really challenging to judge the wind. I’m not focused on winning right now. My goal this week is simply to stay committed and play with confidence.”

Takeyasu, who has made only one bogey (on the par-four 13th hole), was best-placed among the Japanese players in the field.

The 32-year-old, who cut his professional teeth on the Asian Development Tour and won the 2016 PGM UMW Championship in his second start, felt he handled the conditions well.

“I played consistently. Although I did not make some key putts, I managed to hang in there through some tough stretches. So overall, I feel like I played a good round of golf,” said Takeyasu, who worked hard on his putting towards the end of 2024.

“I adjusted my weight position at address, and that has made my stroke feel more comfortable. Also, starting this year, I’ve been working with a putting coach for the first time, which has also helped improve my putting.”

Chan Shih-chang of Chinese Taipei. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

Taiwan’s Chan Shih-chang (63) and New Zealand’s Nick Voke (64) were both bogey-free in shooting the two lowest rounds of the day. Playing in windier afternoon conditions, that helped Chan climb 76 positions from outside the cut-line to tied fifth, while Voke jumped up from tied 55th place at even-par.

Joining Chan and Voke in tied fifth place at seven-under par were Asian Tour members, Guatemala’s Jose Toledo (69), Australia’s Travis Smyth (67) and LIV Golf’s American stars Cameron Tringale (69) and Caleb Surratt (67).

International Series Japan presented by Moutai is the third of 10 elevated events on the Asian Tour calendar that form a pathway onto the LIV Golf League.