Danny Willett
By Mike Berriman
A golfer from Yorkshire is bidding to become the region’s first winner of the Open Championship and leads the field on the second day at St Andrews.
Danny Willett, from Sheffield, raced ahead of overnight leader American Dustin Johnson this morning before finishing off a solid round on nine under par, two shots clear of Marc Warren and another American, Zach Johnson. With playing conditions set to deteriorate this afternoon, the world number 39 looks set to head into the weekend at the top of the leaderboard.
Willett was one of only a few players to cope with the high winds on Thursday evening and he made the most of more favourable playing conditions this morning with a succession of birdies on the old course at St Andrews. The 27-year-old finished off a brilliant two days of a golf with a birdie at the last to leave himself two shots clear of the field.
If Willett – who has only two wins on the European tour – is to lift the Claret Jug on Sunday, he will have to fight off a challenge from some of the best players in the world. US Open and Masters champion Jordan Spieth still has his eyes on the grand slam and will tee-off later today on five under par. Major winners Zach Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Justin Rose and Louis Oosthuizen are all still in the hunt as is home favourite Marc Warren.