JOHANNESBURG – Wallie Coetsee holds a one-shot lead at the Joburg Open after a 6-under 65 on Friday put him 12 under par and at the front of a group of South Africans.

Coetsee leads from fellow home players Garth Mulroy and Tjaart van der Walt at the halfway mark of the European Tour event in Johannesburg, with England’s Simon Dyson also tied for second at 11 under.

Coetsee opened with a 66 on the tougher, par 72 East Course on Thursday, and took his strong form onto the par 71 West Course in the second round.

Coetsee had three straight birdies to start and finished with five birdies and an eagle in all, and just one bogey.

Coetsee is seeking his maiden European Tour title after breaking his 17-year drought on South Africa’s Sunshine Tour last year.

“Somebody must wake me up, it feels like a dream,” he said.

An extra bonus could await Coetsee with the leading three players in the top 10 at the Joburg Open not already exempt qualifying for a place at the British Open at St. Andrews.

Mulroy carded a 68 and Van der Walt a 69 on the East Course. Dyson, also on the East, had six birdies and a bogey in his 67.

Players play a round each on the West and East courses before play moves to the East Course for the weekend.

New Europe Ryder Cup captain Darren Clarke was at 1-over 144 after two rounds to miss the cut at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington.

CHONBURI, Thailand – Stacy Lewis shot an unblemished round of 8-under-par 64 for a three-shot advantage over Amy Yang after the second round of the LPGA Thailand on Friday.

Lewis, the world No. 3, enjoyed four straight birdies from hole Nos. 4-7, plus four more on the back nine, to produce a two-day total of 14-under 130. She also led at Siam Country Club at the halfway stage in 2013, and finished third.

“It really was a pretty easy day,” Lewis said. “I didn’t cause myself too much stress.”

Yang shot five birdies and eagled the par-5 10th in a 66 to lie at 11 under overall. She has three top-five finishes in her last four tournaments.

Four players were another three shots back at 8 under: Germany’s Caroline Masson, South Koreans Jenny Shin and Mirim Lee, and Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn.

Former world No. 1 and two-time champion Yani Tseng of Taiwan, an overnight leader with Lewis and Brittany Lang, carded 72 to drop to 6 under, while Lang shot a 73 to be at 5 under.

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Playing in America for the first time this year, Rory McIlroy’s first shot was a 2-iron out of play.

A relentless wind with gusts that approached 35 mph provided a rude welcome to just about everyone Thursday at the Honda Classic except for Jim Herman, who somehow made it around PGA National without a bogey for a 5-under 65 and a one-shot lead.

McIlroy managed to salvage a tough day with by holing a 30-foot birdie putt and two-putting for birdie on the 18th hole for a 3-over 73. It was his highest opening-round score to par since a 3-over 74 at The Barclays seven months ago. And he didn’t seem too bothered.

The world’s No. 1 player was competing for the first time since he won in Dubai a month ago. And he wasn’t alone. He played with Dustin Johnson, who birdied his last two holes for a 77, and Phoenix Open winner Brooks Koepka, who shot a 78.

“The conditions were obviously very tricky from the start,” McIlroy said. “From the first hole, it was always going to be a day like that. I feel like I salvaged something out of the round the last couple holes, but it was just a day to keep trying, not to give up and know that anything around level, 1-, 2-over par still isn’t out of it.”

Only 19 players managed to break par. Only three holes – both par 5s and the downwind ninth – played under par. Seventeen players had a front-nine score of 40 or higher.

Herman didn’t mind the wind, though he moved to south Florida more than a decade ago and was surprised earlier in the week when there wasn’t hardly any wind at all. Even with a 65, it still wasn’t easy. He twice saved par from the fairway and rolled in a 35-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole.

“I don’t mind it blowing,” Herman said. “I feel like I can control the golf ball pretty well with my iron game. So yeah, it was OK that the wind was blowing.”

Brendan Steele pitched in from about 35 yards to save bogey on the 14th hole, a key moment in his round of 66. Martin Flores, Kapalua winner Patrick Reed and Padraig Harrington were at 67. U.S. Open champion Martin Kaymer was among those at 68.

Harrington would seem to feel at home in these conditions. On a day when the gusts were relentless, they still would be considered a wee breeze in Ireland. Except that the Irishman has spent the last four weeks in gorgeous, calm weather on the West Coast.

“If I had come from Ireland, I probably would be thinking it was a nice day,” Harrington said. “But having played the last four weeks over here, even I was struggling and questioning and doubting myself out there. I found it very difficult.”

McIlroy found that out immediately.

Even starting on the easier first hole, the wind fooled him and took his 2-iron far to the right and toward the driving range. Just like that, he was 2 over.

He found the water left of the green on the par-3 fifth hole for another double bogey, and came a foot within big trouble on the 14th. His tee shot sent left toward the houses and stopped about 18 inches from the out-of-bounds stakes. He made bogey to fall to 5 over with four holes remaining.

Walking to the 15th tee, the power group of the day had put up some shocking numbers.

Johnson, who contended at Riviera and Pebble Beach, was 9 over for his round. Koepka was 5 over. Collectively, that made the group 19 over.

“Walking from 14 green to 15 tee, I said to Brooks, `Let’s just make a couple birdies on the way in, try and get something out of it,'” McIlroy said. “Luckily, I was sort of able to do that. But it was tough. When nothing is going your way and you don’t really have anything to feed off, you don’t see many good shots and guys … we’re all struggling. It was a grind out there. We’ll all go home and put our feet up and get ready for tomorrow.”

No one could remember the last time they faced such wind, which wasn’t that strong for south Florida. There was virtually no wind in Hawaii this year, or even at Pebble Beach. It was a stiff start to the Florida Swing.

Reed had the best score of the afternoon wave, when the wind was at its strongest.

“When I hit 6-iron normally 200 yards and I’m pulling 6-iron from 170, it’s tough,” Reed said. “The main thing was just to stay in my golf swing and just be comfortable and try to be confident that’s the club to hit from those distances. I feel like I did a good job.”

Phil Mickelson opened with a 71 and was relatively pleased, though that was hard work. He hit into water hazards three times on the front nine.

“I really enjoyed the challenge of the day,” Mickelson said. “It’s fun to be back out competing, and I had a good day with the putter.”

Canada’s David Hearn was a shot better than Mickelson. The Brantford, Ont. native opened with a 70 to lead the Canadian contingent in Florida.

Abbotsford, B.C.’s Adam Hadwin opened with a 72, while Weyburn, Sask.’s Graham DeLaet carded a 75.

Mike Weir withdrew with an elbow injury.

Developing talent is a lengthy process. Just ask Team Canada Women’s Development Squad coach Ann Carroll, who is tasked with coaching three new highly talented members—all under the age of 17.

Among those athletes is 16-year-old Ottawa native Grace St. Germain. The reigning Canadian Junior Girls Champion is one of Canada’s brightest young stars, but has a long road ahead to reaching her golf goals —she currently sits at No. 426 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR). As with all athletes, success doesn’t come over night— it takes time, and lots of it.

Carroll has identified some clear strengths and weaknesses in Grace’s game that will be a focal point for her first full-season with Team Canada’s Development Squad.

“She really bears down in competition. Always ready to rise to the occasion and give it her all in each tournament,” said Carroll. “This year we will focusing on getting physically stronger through her own strength and conditioning program, which will continue to challenge her throughout all of 2015.”

The pair first worked together at the inaugural World Junior Girls Championship last fall, where Canada took home the bronze medal on home soil. Grace finished T22 overall, a promising sign against a strong international field.

When asked what strengths she first noticed with Grace, Carroll’s answer was typical.

“Listen, she is into this (the program) 100 percent, I know that for sure,” Carroll added. “She’s very coachable and will go above and beyond what is asked of her.”

St-Germain’s seven-stroke Junior Girls Championship win last year at Thornhill Golf & Country Club comes with recognition, but also with added pressure and expectation to perform. Carroll, along with the supporting staff, will play an important role in balancing her expectations and mental game throughout her journey to the top.

JOHANNESBURG – Nic Henning made seven birdies and an eagle and equaled the course record with his 9-under 62 for the first-round lead at the Joburg Open on Thursday.

Henning had five of his birdies and the eagle on the first nine to go out in 29 on the par-71 West Course at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club. The European Tour’s first 59 seemed a real possibility then, but Henning made just two birdies coming home.

He leads by a shot from South African compatriots Tjaart van der Walt and Titch Moore, and Belgium’s Thomas Pieters.

Moore had a hole-in-one on the par-3 No. 5, as the 13 leading players after round one all opened on the easier West Course.

CHONBURI, Thailand – Yani Tseng shot an opening 6-under 66 Thursday to take a share of the lead with American rivals Stacy Lewis and Brittany Lang at the LPGA Thailand.

Tseng, a former No. 1 from Taiwan who won the title in Chonburi in 2011 and 2012, had seven birdies and a bogey at Siam Country Club.

“Could be better, could be worse,” said Tseng, a five-time major champion. “I miss(ed) couple short putts, but I just tell myself to smile and let it go.”

Lewis, who only got her clubs back on Wednesday after an airline had misplaced them, started with an eagle on the opening hole.

“No. 1 was just a bonus, holing out with a wedge shot there,” said Lewis, who also had six birdies. “I don’t know if I’ve ever shot 29 before, so it was cool.”

Lang had five of her eight birdies on the back nine.

“I got off to a good start with a birdie on 10 and 11,” Lang said. “I was just really seeing my shots and committing to them. Just felt effortless really.”

Six players have a share of fourth, a shot off the lead. They are Lizette Salas, Budsabakorn Sukapan, Any Yang, Ariya Jutanugarn, Mirim Lee and Suzann Petersen.

Defending champion Anna Nordqvist (72) had three birdies and three bogeys.

There are no Canadians in the field this week.

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Fans stood three-deep and formed a corridor from the 18th green at PGA National as they tried to get an autograph, a picture or even a close look at Rory McIlroy. Moments later, another group of fans pressed against him with souvenir flags to sign as McIlroy left a conference room.

The attention comes with being the No. 1 player in golf, the apparent heir to Tiger Woods. McIlroy is used to this by now. He has been the best player in the world since August, filling the void of a sport looking for a dominant figure.

“This is the position I want to be in,” McIlroy said Wednesday. “And I want to be in it as long as I can.”

It’s only going to get more chaotic.

McIlroy competes on U.S. soil for the first time in five months when the Honda Classic begins on Thursday. The palm trees and tropical warmth of south Florida are the sure signs that the Masters is around the corner. McIlroy, who blew a four-shot lead in the final round at Augusta National in 2011, goes there with a chance to become only the sixth player to capture the career Grand Slam.

Like other players, the 25-year-old will venture up to Augusta to practice in the coming month. The real preparation is to play good golf, and to allow that confidence to become momentum that he can carry to the first major of the year.

“People talk about momentum and talk about sort of riding it, but I think momentum and confidence are two very similar things in golf,” McIlroy said. “If you’re confident and you’ve had good performances, that confidence seems to carry on. And if you’re happy with how practice goes, then you’re obviously going to be confident going into tournaments. So that’s sort of how I’m feeling right now. And try to keep that feeling for as long as I can.”

It seems like it’s been a long time already.

McIlroy still isn’t anywhere near the roll Woods enjoyed during his peak years. Going into the 2000 Masters, for example, Woods won 11 times in 19 starts and only twice finished out of the top 10. No one was close to him.

In his last 12 starts worldwide dating to the British Open, McIlroy has four victories (including back-to-back majors and a World Golf Championship), four runner-up finishes and has finished out of the top 10 two times.

In his last six tournaments, he has finished no worse than second place in all but one tournament, the Australian Open. So yes, he’s going along quite nicely.

The obstacle at the Honda Classic might be rust.

McIlroy hasn’t played since winning the Dubai Desert Classic on Feb. 1. He got past one potential distraction when he settled a court case involving his former management company. He has been home in south Florida the last three weeks, practicing and playing and trying to stay on this roll during an important part of the season.

McIlroy won the Honda Classic in 2012, the first time he rose to No. 1 in the world. A year ago, he was poised to win again until he stumbled on the back nine at PGA National, only to hit 5-wood into 10 feet on the final hole for a two-putt birdie to get into a four-man playoff. Russell Henley won on the first extra hole. McIlroy didn’t really get going until a few months later, but he’s been tough to beat ever since.

“He’s the best player in the world,” Rickie Fowler said. “And when he’s driving the ball well, that’s when he’s deadliest. So he did a good job of putting himself in play last year and obviously hits longer than a lot of guys, too.”

Woods isn’t around. He said two weeks ago he wouldn’t return to competition until his game was in tournament shape. So far, that’s just one tournament – the Honda Classic – though the attention on the absence of Woods is sure to ratchet up if he misses Bay Hill.

McIlroy is mixing up his schedule slightly this year. He’ll be at the WGC event next week at Doral and then play the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill for the first time, making it likely he will have two weeks off for Augusta.

The Masters, at the moment, is not on his mind.

“I feel like I’ve got a nice schedule going into Augusta,” McIlroy said. “I’m not playing too much, but I’m playing just enough that I should be as sharp as possible going in there. I haven’t thought about it. What I really thought about over the past couple of weeks is getting ready for these events coming up, and trying to play as well as I possibly can in those. So that gives me a little confidence going into a little break to prepare as well as I can for Augusta.”

Here’s a look at some of Rory McIlroy’s best shots on the PGA Tour (excluding majors) courtesy of the PGA Tour.