David Higgins took his foot off the pedal at the Telcom PGA Championship in South Africa today to forego the overnight lead he shared at the Woodhill Country Club in Pretoria.
The 28-year-old could only manage a level par round and therefore slipped five shots off the pace and outright lead held by South African Tim Clark.
Clark leads on 11-under following today’s five-under 67 and it gave this year's South African Open winner a three shot cushion from a trio of compatriots in a share of second. They are, Don Gammon (68), Marco Gortana (68), and Michael Kirk (70).
While Clark compiled a flawless round with five birdies, Higgins battled well during the closing stages of his round to ensure the margin was not greater.
Having reached the turn in level, Higgins dropped back with a bogey, double-bogey combination from the 12th. However, the Challenge Tour player displayed battling qualities with three birdies in the last four holes to retrieve a potentially ruinous day.
Peter Lawrie had a nervous wait to see if he would take part over the weekend after a gutsy second round 69. The Dubliner squeezed in on the cut mark on one-over 145 despite bogeying the final hole.
Unfortunately Stephen Browne, the third Irish player in the Sunshine Tour event, failed to qualify. He missed the cut by three after today’s 76.