Marcus Lim fired a six-under-par second round to take the halfway lead at the PGM Tiara Melaka Closed Championship at Tiara Melaka Golf & Country Club on Wednesday.
Lim moved to seven-under-par after 36 holes, giving him a one-shot advantage over Zia Izzuddeen heading into Thursday’s final round. His round included a series of birdies, with his only setback coming at the par-four 12th hole.
The strong performance continued Lim’s consistent season on the PGM Tour. He finished runner-up at the recent PGM Royal Pekan Closed Championship after losing to veteran Shaifubari Muda in a playoff and has recorded several top-10 finishes this year.
His appearances on the Asian Development Tour have also provided valuable competitive experience as he searches for his first PGM victory of the season.
Zia remains firmly in contention at six-under-par, while Kemarol Baharin surged into third place after producing the day’s best round of eight-under-par 64.
Nor Heikal Hadi is a further shot back at four-under-par.
A total of 49 players advanced to the final round following the 36-hole cut.
Zulaikah Nasser
In the Ladies Championship, Zulaikah Nasser retained the lead after recording her second consecutive one-under-par round. She sits at two-under-par after 36 holes, two shots ahead of Pang Hee Jie, who is at even par.
Malaysian Olympian Kelly Tan, making her return to the PGM Tour, is five shots behind the leader at three-over-par.
The PGM Tiara Melaka Closed Championship is being played on the par-72 Meadow and Woodland courses at Tiara Melaka Golf & Country Club. The men’s championship carries a prize purse of RM180,000, while RM30,000 is on offer in the women’s event.
Leading scores:
137 – MARCUS LIM 71 66
138 – ZIA IZZUDDEEN 70 68
139 – KEMAROL BAHARIN 75 64
140 – NOR HEIKAL HADI 69 71
141 – DAENG RAHMAN 72 69, KIM LEUN KWANG 71 70, ZIA IQMAL 69 72
142 – RYAN FERNANDEZ 73 69, EDVEN YING 71 71, SHAIFUBARI MUDA 71 71
143 – DANIAL FAIDZ 73 70, NOR HAQEIM HADI (a) 72 71, MAXWIN CHIEW 72 71, JUSTIN CHAN 68 75
144 – ZUBAIR FIRDAUS 71 73, AFIF FATHI 71 73
Ladies’ leading scores:
142 – ZULAIKAH NASSER 71 71
144 – PANG HEE JIE 73 71
147 – CHARLAYNE CHONG 74 73, KELLY TAN 74 73, AFIFAH RAZIF 73 74, AMIRAH NUR HANANIA 71 76
149 – DURRIYAH DAMIAN 74 75
150 – AMELIA LEE 74 76
