<div><p>South African Retief Goosen recovered from the embarrassment of a putt rolling back to his feet by taking a one-shot lead Friday after two rounds of the Sun City Challenge.</p><p>The 'Goose' added a four-under 68 to his opening-round 69 at the sun-soaked Gary Player Country Club for a halfway total of 137 with Australian Robert Allenby, Argentine Angel Cabrera and Swede Henrik Stenson joint second.</p><p>Overnight leader Allenby fired a 70 on the 7,162-metre course at a north-west entertainment centre, Cabrera hit a 67 for the best round so far and holder Stenson struck a 68 for a two-shot improvement on his first 18 holes.</p><p>South African Tim Clark (72) and American Hunter Mahan (71) had higher scores than the opening round and are four shots adrift of Goosen in a 12-man invitational field.</p><p>Star attraction Rory McIlroy, the 20-year-old native of Hollywood in Northern Ireland ranked 10 in the world, continued to struggle with a three-over 76 leaving him 12 shots off the pace.</p><p>Former Challenge champion and twice US Open winner Goosen birdied three of the first four holes and parred the next three before disaster struck at the 450-metre par-four eighth.</p><p>He left an uphill putt short, agonisingly watched the ball trickle back to his feet, and had settle for a bogey five although the damage was quickly repaired with another birdie at the ninth to turn three under.</p><p>Goosen was less impressive on a back nine that delivered two birdies and one bogey as he scrambled to save par several times, but was out of luck at the final hole with a long putt lipping the cup.</p><p>Reigning US Masters champions Cabrera displayed his prowess with four first-nine birdies, two the result of lengthy putts, and added another two before bogeying the 16th for the sole blemish of the day.</p><p>Allenby had another round characterised by consistency with three birdies and one bogey, his first of the tournament, at the par-four 15th although he scrambled to salvage par on the closing two holes.</p><p>An early burst of three birdies set up Stenson for a round highlighted by superb iron play that reaped five birdies and just one bogey to say on course for back-to-back triumphs in the African 'major'.</p><p>McIlroy dreamt as a teenager of competing at Sun City, but his first visit is taking on a nightmarish slant with an eagle-three at the ninth the sole pleasure from a round that appears to have knocked him out of contention.</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=64758626&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

Copyright 2009  <a href="http://www.afp.com/english/links/?pid=copyright">AFP Global Edition</a></div></div>