George Coetzee leads Tshwane Open by 1 shot

PRETORIA, South Africa (AP) George Coetzee shot a second-round 64 on the course he grew up playing on to lead the Tshwane Open by one at the midway mark on Friday.

Coetzee made six birdies on a rampant back nine and seven overall to go to 11 under overall, jump six places up the leaderboard, and move ahead of Felipe Aguilar (67) and Mikko Korhonen (64).

Coetzee, a native of Pretoria and once a regular at the Pretoria Country Club, is seeking a fourth European Tour title and his second at the Tshwane Open after winning in 2015.

He put himself in a strong position with four straight birdies over Nos. 12-15 and two more on 17 and 18 in his 7-under round.

Chile's Aguilar had an eagle, four birdies and two bogeys. Like Coetzee, Finland's Korhonen also finished strong with five birdies in his last seven. Aguilar and Korhonen were 10 under.

There's a group of four players three shots behind them.

Danny Willett, the 2016 U.S. Masters champion, improved his chances with a second-round, 3-under 68 to go to 4 under and ensure he made the cut.