by England’s Matt Baldwin will take a two-shot lead into the third round of the BMW PGA Championship after a record-breaking performance at Wentworth.
A former partner of Tommy Fleetwood, who also worked as a delivery driver to fund his golf, Baldwin is in pole position to win the £1.15 million top prize after adding a 66 to his opening 65 for a total of halfway to 13 under par. , tying the tournament record set by Paul McGinley in 2008.
British Masters winner Niklas Norgaard is Baldwin’s closest challenger at 11 under after a 68, while Frenchman Antoine Rozner fell further behind after making six birdies over the final seven holes in a 65-under bogey.
Rory McIlroy is four shots back at nine under after adding a 68 to his opening 67.
Play was suspended for 77 minutes due to the threat of lightning shortly before noon, with Baldwin having just holed out from 25 feet for par on the 16th before the siren sounded.
The 38-year-old won his first DP World Tour title in South Africa last year, but admitted he considered quitting the game on several occasions as he struggled to retain his card.
“I worked three or four months at Amazon driving a van just to get through the winter before the Challenge Tour started in 2022,” said Baldwin, who lost his card in 2016 but got it back for 2018 after a sixth visit to qualifying. school.
“I learned a lot from it. I learned that there were other things I could do in life, but I also learned that I really wanted to play golf.
“I remember pulling up to a building, jumping out of the van, getting in the back and all of a sudden I felt like I was moving and I was like, ‘Oh no, I forgot to put the handbrake on.
“So I ran from the back, I ran to the side, I put the handbrake on, I still didn’t want to stop, I pulled him some more, he finally stopped. stopped about inches from a blue Fiesta.
“There was a woman I was delivering a package to who watched the whole thing and she said, ‘I couldn’t get my phone out fast enough to film it.’
Growing up in Southport, Baldwin played junior golf with Ryder Cup star Fleetwood, whose second-round 68 left him six shots behind his former Lancashire teammate.
“I don’t think we’ve ever lost,” Baldwin added. “We played a lot of golf growing up, graduated from the Challenge Tour the same year and obviously played a little bit here.
“Our paths have been slightly different but I hope I can make up for it.”
McIlroy entered the week on the back of a heartbreaking defeat at the Irish Open at Royal County Down, where he looked set to claim his first professional victory on home soil until costly late bogeys saw him finish one shot behind Rasmus Hojgaard.
“It’s really important (to play well) but it’s also nice, I wouldn’t have wanted to spend a week off feeling sorry for myself if I hadn’t played,” McIlroy said.
“To come back and get right back on the golf course and play a few solid rounds to give myself a chance at another really big tournament that means a lot to me, I thought it was important to do that and luckily I did do.
“Obviously last week, I don’t know if there’s anything comparable to that scene on Sunday 18, but the crowd here for the first two days, it’s incredible.
“It’s a real tournament, that’s what you’re supposed to feel like and it’s a pleasure to play in front of them in that atmosphere.”
