European Senior Masters – La Manga, Spain Round Two: 71 (-2) | Overall: -1 | Tied 37th A Frustrating Front Nine Andrew Marshall produced a determined performance in the second round of the European Senior Masters, returning a two-under-par 71 to move into red figures for the tournament. With an early start and very little wind, the opening two holes produced regulation pars. However, a three-putt bogey at the third suggested that the putter was still refusing to cooperate. At the dangerous par-five fourth, Marshy attacked with a three-wood after a good drive. Although clearing the water, his ball finished in a hazard. An excellent recovery followed, leaving a tap-in birdie. Birdie opportunities at the fifth, sixth and seventh all went begging before an errant drive at the eighth led to another difficult situation. His second shot caught a tree, but an excellent recovery limited the damage to a bogey. Another birdie opportunity slipped away at the ninth, leaving Marshy one over for the day and two over for the tournament at halfway. A Back Nine Worth Waiting For! Birdie chances continued to come and go at the tenth, eleventh and twelfth. Particularly frustrating was the missed putt at the eleventh from just two and a half feet. The tide finally began to turn at the par-five thirteenth. A fine second shot finished in a greenside bunker, but an excellent bunker shot almost found the hole, leaving a simple birdie. A poor tee shot at the fourteenth required another fine recovery to secure par, followed by a regulation par at the fifteenth. Then came the moment Marshy had been waiting for! A fine drive at the sixteenth set up a birdie opportunity from around twenty feet and, at long last, the putt dropped! At the seventeenth, a tee shot into the bunker was followed by another excellent recovery, leaving a tap-in par. And so to the par-five eighteenth, where a fine drive and rescue shot gave Marshy an eagle opportunity. Two solid putts secured another birdie and completed an excellent finish. Three birdies in the final six holes, a back nine of 33 and a two-under-par 71! Marshy finished at one under par for the tournament, sharing 37th place heading into the final round. Meanwhile, the Leaders Are Flying! Van Phillips leads at fourteen under par following a six-under-par round, with Felipe Aguilar just one shot behind at thirteen under. The outstanding round of the day came from Jeev Milkha Singh, who produced a sensational nine-under-par performance to move into third place at twelve under. Jean Hugo and Matthew Cort share fourth place at eleven under. Position Player Score 1 Van Phillips -14 2 Felipe Aguilar -13 3 Jeev Milkha Singh -12 T4 Jean Hugo -11 T4 Matthew Cort -11 T37 Andrew Marshall -1 One More Round, Marshy! Our thanks once again to Melly Harbour for his excellent hole-by-hole account and photographs from Spain. Melly reports that today's round took just over five hours, which is certainly far too long, but full credit to Marshy for maintaining his concentration and determination throughout. There were plenty of moments when frustration could easily have taken over. Instead, he kept battling, produced some excellent recovery shots and finished strongly. The quality of his ball striking is clearly there. If the putter can warm up tomorrow, another good round could see him climb into the top thirty. Good luck in the final round, Marshy. Let's hope those birdie putts finally start dropping! Steve