Branden Grace rockets into contention at Nedbank Golf Challenge

South Africa’s Branden Grace fired a five-under-par 67 to get within one shot of the leaders after the second round of the Nedbank Golf Challenge at Sun City on Saturday morning. 

The 2017 champion here was seven under par overall alongside Gavin Green of Malaysia, who fired the best score of the round, a 65. 

Englishmen Luke Donald and Richard Bland were in front on eight under par.

The second round was completed just before noon on Saturday after being delayed by persistent rain on Friday.

 First-round leader Ryan Fox of New Zealand shot a two-over 74, negating his four birdies with four bogeys and a double drop on the hardest hole of the course, the par-four eighth. 

Donald, the co-leader with Fox when play was stopped on Friday, shot 71. 

By the time Fox, Donald and Italy’s Guido Migliozzi, who carded 10 on the par-four 17th, walked off the 18th green, the third round was already under way behind them, the pins having been repositioned on the greens. 

Organisers kept the same groupings for the third round to save time. 

Green, who started his third round at 10.40am, was misfiring badly with consecutive bogeys on the first five holes.