Toyota world junior team championship Day 2

JAMES BYRNE COOKS UP A 65 BUT

REST OF SCOTS BOYS GO OFF

THE BOIL IN JAPAN

Banchory’s James Byrne served up a sizzling, six-under-par 65 but the rest of the Scotland team went off the boil in the second round of the Toyota world boys’ team golf championship in Japan. Byrne, pictured right, whose score was the joint best of the day, improved by eight shots on his opening 73 and is sixth in the individual standings with an aggregate of four-under-par 138 over the 6,886yd, par-71 Ishino course at Chukyo Golf Club.
Unfortunately, none of James’ three team-mates could match or better par. Michael Stewart (Troon Welbeck) fell back from first-day 67 to a 72 and Scottish boys’ match-play champion Paul Ferrier (Baberton) had a nightmare 85, a 13-shot slump compared with Tuesday.
Shaun McAllister’s 74 in the first round was Scotland’s non-counter but his 75 in the second round had to become the third counting score, given Ferrier’s problems.
Scotland’s second-round total of 212 matched their first-round effort but with a 36-hole tally of 424 they actually slipped from eighth to ninth place among the 14 competing nations.
Sweden, runners-up to Norway in this championship 12 months ago, have opened up a five-stroke lead over their Scandinavian rivals with a 21-under-par tally of 405 to the Norwegians’ 410.
At the halfway stage, Sweden and Norway appear to have outstripped the field because third-placed Mexico are nine shots adrift of Norway.