Bland jumps into Italian Open lead

Posted on Sep 14, 2012 in Sports | 0 comments

Richard Bland closed with three consecutive birdies Friday and has the lead halfway through the European Tour’s BMW Italian Open.

Bland, one of the last players off Friday, opened with a birdie and posted nine consecutive pars before taking off. He had five birdies in his last eight holes, including on 16, 17 and 18. That gave him a second-straight 6-under-par 66 and a one-stroke lead on a group of four players.

Gregory Bourdy turned in the round of the day with a bogey-free 8-under 64 to get to 11-under after 36 holes. Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and Marc Warren each shot 65 Friday and Garth Mulroy had a 67 and are tied with Bourdy for second.

Richard McEvoy (68 Friday) is along in sixth at 10-under but seven players, including first-round leader Joel Sjoholm (71) are lurking at 9-under.

Copyright 2012 by United Press International