Jake Roos says he is at the stage of his career when it’s a case of “Go big or go homeâ€. After rounds of 65 and 63 to lead the Sunshine Tour’s Players Championship by three strokes going into the weekend at Dainfern Golf Estate, he’s clearly going big.
For the second day in succession Roos played bogey-free golf and he tops the leaderboard on 16 under par with 36 holes remaining.
Oliver Bekker is his nearest challenger on 13 under following a second round of 66, while Jean Hugo and Jaco Prinsloo are both next best on 12 under following respective second rounds of 64 and 67.
On Friday, Roos gave himself some much-needed distance at the top of a previously cluttered leaderboard. And a new grip, new putter and new mindset are all working in Roos’s favour on a course that is rewarding aggressive play.
“I’m at the stage in my career where it’s kind of go big or go home now. In a sense that frees you up and you can just go for the shots out there and not think about it too much,†said the six-time Sunshine Tour winner.
“I’m quite surprised that the scores are this good. It shows that everybody has been practising hard in the lockdown. For me it’s been a nice two days. The first round was solid and it’s not always easy to follow that up. But I felt good again and just managed to keep it flowing. It’s been a combination of things I think. I’ve changed my grip a bit and weakened my right hand. I’ve also changed my putter. It’s all helped. I’m very pleased,†said Roos.
And he’s determined not to take his eye off the ball this weekend.
“I’ll just keep going. I’ve got some good players behind me. There’s lots of talent on this Tour, and on this kind of course everybody is going to make a lot of birdies. So I’ll just try and keep going.†– Michael Vlismas
Photo: Tyrone Winfield/Sunshine Tour
