Augusta: Thailand's Kiradech Aphibarnrat fought swirly winds to settle for a level-par 72 and four shots off the lead in the second round at the Masters on Friday.
The 29-year-old, who opened with a 69 on Thursday, traded three birdies against as many bogeys at Augusta to end the second round in joint 16th with his two-day aggregate of three-under 141, maintaining his perfect record at the year's opening major where he has made the cut in three appearances.
Kiradech, the first Thai to play full-time on the PGA Tour, produced some wonderful golf to keep himself on the fringe of contention but he also endured an injury scare after producing a gutsy recovery shot on 17.
"I played some good golf. The winds were everywhere and it's very tricky and my putting wasn't sharp. I had chances from around 10 feet, about three or four but overall even par on this course is acceptable," said Kiradech, who finished tied for 15th and 44th in 2016 and 2018 here.
Kiradech, who played alongside Japan's Shugo Imahira and WGC-Match Play champion Kevin Kisner, took some time to shake off pain in his right knee after tumbling onto the turf following a hooked approach shot around some pine trees on the 17th hole.
"I think I'll be fine. I felt sharp pain on my right knee and I fell down. It took a few minutes to recover," said the four-time European Tour winner.
