Golf: Birdie blitz lifts Oosthuizen into African Open lead

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Golf: Birdie blitz lifts Oosthuizen into African Open lead

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Louis Oosthuizen grabbed two-stroke lead after the second round of the Africa Open.

07 January,2012 04:29 am

Former British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen returned a birdie-saturated 62 on Friday to surge into a two-stroke lead after the second round of the Africa Open.It was a welcome return to top form by the 2010 Open winner, who has not finished first in a European Tour event since lifting the Africa Open trophy after a play-off here 12 months ago.Oosthuizen, a 29-year-old native of Western Cape town Mossel Bay, admitted before the first tournament on the 2012 Road to Dubai teed off that he might be distracted as his wife is expecting their second child.But there was no holding him back as he atoned for a modest opening 69 with a round that included one eagle and nine birdies, and was just one stroke outside the course record set by compatriot Richard Sterne.South Africans Tjaart van der Walt (second-round 64), former Major winner Retief Goosen (68), first-round leader Thomas Aiken (69) and Jaco Ahlers (68) share second place on 133 at the par-73, 6,190-metre East London Golf Club.Swede Magnus Carlsson (65) is alone on 134, one stroke ahead of Englishmen Tommy Fleetwood (66) and Danny Willett (68) and Scots Alastair Forsyth (66) and Craig Lee (67).