Noda city: Thailand's Panuphol Pittayarat shot a three-under-par 68 to stay joint second at the halfway stage of the Panasonic Open Japan yesterday.
He was on 135 along with Filipino Juvic Pagunsan, South Korea's Hur In-Hoi and Japan's Yujiro Ohori, who were two shots behind American Jason Knutzon.
Knutzon had a two-day total of 133 after hitting a 69 in the second round at the Chiba Country Club in the US$1.37 million tournament co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour Organisation.
Although Panuphol is grieving over the tragic loss of his girlfriend, the 24-year-old still managed to show the consistency that has led him to two top-10s this season.
"I've been playing really solid golf over the past two days. I've been keeping the ball in place and making less mistakes. I've been feeling really good on the golf course and I've been very consistent with my ball striking since the start of the year," said Panuphol who is seeking his breakthrough win on the Asian Tour.
"I went through a slight mental breakdown recently but I've fought back and I'm keeping up well. I believe someone is watching me from above and I hope not to disappoint."
The burly star lost his girlfriend in a tragic motorcycle accident recently but overcame the emotional pain barrier to win a domestic tournament that week.
Knutzon is seeking to end his title drought on the Asian Tour, with the last of his three triumphs coming in 20047.
"After such a long break, I'm in the heat of everything and I'm really excited now. I'm going to try my best and see what happens," the American said.
"Mentally, I'm fresh. Golf is really a funny game when you play without much expectations."