Day two digest: 2022 Catalunya Championship

Everything you need to know from day two in Spain.

Laurie cantered ahead, Fox was flying, Thomas showed the young guns how it was done and Pablo was perfect on day two of the 2022 Catalunya Championship.

Here is everything you need to know from Friday at PGA Catalunya Golf and Wellness.

Canter edges ahead

Laurie Canterwill take a one-shot lead into the weekend after carding a 67 on day two. The Englishman was four shots off the lead at the start of play but fired the lowest round of the day with a 67 to get to seven under and lead the way from countryman James Morrison and South African Oliver Bekker at seven under. Dane Thomas Bjørn, Spaniard Ivan Cantero Gutierrez, Kiwi Ryan Fox, England's Daniel Gavins and Frenchman Adrien Saddier were then at five under.

And he's comfortable in Catalunya

Canter has enjoyed some considerable success in Catalunya down the years. He came through the Qualifying School at this week's venue in 2015 and 2016 and last week's at Infinitum - just 120 miles up the road - in 2017 and 2019. After back-to-back top-25 finishes on the DP World Tour Rankings in Partnership with Rolex, his days of worrying about keeping his card may be over but the Englishman was glad of his previous experience as he shot a 67. "I feel like I’ve spent half my life in this part of Spain, between here and Lumine (Infinitum)," he said. "I think I’ve been to Q School six or seven times. I know it well, know a few of the local restaurants, I guess that counts - you feel comfortable. I love this golf course, I love the facilities and everything about it. It’s genuinely a bit of a privilege to play it. I think it’s a really special place."

Fantastic Fox in formidable form

Fox carded four consecutive rounds in the 60s as he won his second DP World Tour title in wire-to-wire fashion at the Ras Al Khaimah Classic in February. He then flew back to New Zealand and - after 10 days in hotel quarantine - saw his 14-month-old daughter Isabel, whose first steps he had recently missed. After nine weeks of family time, he returned to action with four more rounds in the 60s and a top-15 finish last week and, after starting 71-67 in Girona, he has now recorded ten consecutive under-par rounds. "Really happy, best I’ve hit it in a couple of months," he said. "You can get out of position really quickly on this golf course and make bogeys quick. I managed to stay out of trouble for the most part. Made a couple of sloppy bogeys coming home, but the rest of it was really good."

Bjørn hails the Højgaards

The Bjørns and the Højgaards gave us all a smile earlier this week then Nicolai and Rasmus were pictured holding Thomas' own set of twins. Always a fierce champion of Danish golf, Thomas has quite rightly long been singing the praises of the European Tour's latest pair of star brothers and he gave another insight in an on-course interview on Friday. "They're two great kids Nicolai and Rasmus," he said. "We have a lot of great conversations and obviously it's not one generation gap it's probably two or three by now but it's nice to have those conversations. Me and Grace have our boys here this week and it was a nice photo and an opportunity that we couldn't let slip by." And while 51-year-old Thomas may be 30 years the Højgaards' senior, he was showing them how it's done on the course, opening with two under par rounds for the first time since 2020 to be the leading Dane after 36 holes.

No stains on Larrazábal

Pablo Larrazábal may well be in the form of his life. He closed with a 62 to win his seventh DP World Tour title last week, a second victory in four starts. He managed to card a level-par 72 on day one without a birdie (he did make an eagle) but on Friday he was the only player to go bogey-free in carding a 69. He's just four back.