Perth International 2017: Friday Leaderboard Scores and Highlights

Brett Rumford took an outright lead at theISPS Handa World Super 6 Perth on Friday as he took his score to 13 under.The Australian carded a six-under 66 on Thursday for a share of the lead, but after picking up seven more shots he now holds a two-shot lead over compatriot David Bransdon.Here's how the standings look after two days of play:The full leaderboard can be accessed via the European Tour's official website. Friday RecapAs on the opening day, Perth local Rumford made just one blemish in an otherwise excellent round.The 39-year-old opened with a birdie on the first hole and produced an exceptional second shot at the fourth to save par, per the European Tour's official Twitter feed:Rumford made further gains at the sixth, which sparked an impressive run of five birdies in succession, including an escape from a bunker at the seventh followed by this at the eighth:A sublime 30-foot putt gave him his seventh shot of the round at hole 13, and he bounced back from a bogey on the following hole with his final birdie at the 15th.Only the top 24 players make it through to the final day, where this year they will then face off in a six-hole match play knockout competition.Those in the top eight heading into Sunday's new format will receive a bye into the second round of matches, and Rumford is targeting one of those places.Per the Tour's official website, he said:Oh, 100 per cent, definitely. That's one less lottery round you have to deal with, isn't it' So that's definitely a huge bonus qualifying inside that top eight. It's definitely something I am thinking about.For any players, that's why it's going to be so unique and so interesting as well. There's sort of cuts within cuts this week and if you're not thinking about it, maybe it's a good thing, maybe a bad thing, I'm not too sure, but definitely the top eight is where you want to be.With a five-shot lead over those comprising the bottom places in the top eight, Rumford stands an excellent chance of staying there providing he avoids a disaster on Saturday.There are 25 players with a score of six under or better, though, so the stage is set for a busy moving day as they compete for a place in Sunday's match play and for a bye into the last 16.For the likes of Rumford and Bransdon, Saturday will be all about holding onto their place in the top eight and keeping their momentum going for when their scores are wiped clean on Sunday.
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