BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Japanese-born New Zealander Kazuma Kobori finished his round with four consecutive birdies for an 8-under 63 Friday to take a one-stroke lead into the third round of the Australian PGA Championship.
Kobori, who won the 2019 New Zealand PGA Championship, had a two-round total of 10-under 132 at Royal Queensland. He had a hole-in-one during his first round.
Australian Brett Rankin, who shot 69 Friday, was among a group tied for second. Rankin completed his first round earlier in the day due to a thunderstorm suspension on Thursday.
Sebastian Garcia of Spain, who led Rankin by one stroke after the first round, had a 72 Friday and was three strokes behind.
Marco Penge, who won three times on the European tour this year and is the tournament’s highest-ranked player at No. 30, shot 65 Friday and was also three strokes off the lead.
Former British Open champion and LIV Tour regular Cameron Smith shot 75 and missed a seventh straight cut.
“I don’t know, I just don’t know. I was so confused," Smith, who was playing in his home state of Queensland, said. “I was feeling good, really confident and just couldn’t get anything going."
The tournament is co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour of Australia and the European tour, which is starting its 2025-26 season just two weeks after Rory McIlroy won the Race to Dubai title.
McIlroy will highlight the field in next week's Australian Open at Royal Melbourne beginning Dec. 4.
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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