Gary Hurley will be fighting on all fronts this weekend in China after he recovered from a rocky middle period of his second round to remain firmly in the mix at the Hainan Open.
Hurley fired ten birdies in round one and after rolling in three birdies in a row on the 12th, 13th and 14th holes and another on the 18th it looked like he might be on his way to another blockbuster day.
Dropped shots on the first and second holes halted his momentum but he recovered with a birdie on the par-5 6th to sign for a round of 69 and a ten-under total, two shots adrift of JC Ritchie, Oliver Lindell and Niklas Lemke.
Hurley began the week ranked 41st in the Road to Mallorca Rankings, with the top-45 progressing to the Grand Final in three weeks time.
Lying in seventh after two rounds here, the 31-year-old is projected to move into 39th position and a top-5 finish would consolidate his position in Mallorca.
However, the West Waterford man could go a long way towards securing a permanent return to the DP World Tour with a win as the top-20 at the end of the season will secure promotion to Europe’s top-tier.
Meanwhile, Jonathan Caldwell has kept his faint hopes of a grand final appearance alive after a second round of 68 although it leaves him in 30th position on six-under-par and still projected 72nd in the Road to Mallorca Rankings.
The Clandeboye man will need a big move to push towards the top-45 and give himself a chance heading into the final regular event of the season next week.
Conor Purcell faded out of contention late in his round after enduring a mixed yet frustrating day.
The Portmarnock man carded a one-over 73 to drop back to four-over and eight shots off the pace.
Purcell turned in 39 after two bogeys, a birdie and a double bogey on the back nine, his front.
The 27-year-old responded with a bang and dragged himself back into contention with an eagle on the par-5 2nd and two birdies on 5 and 7. However, he shot himself in the foot with two closing bogeys.
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