DUBAI // <a href="gopher://topicL3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL1Blb3BsZS9TcG9ydCBzdGFycy9VQUUgc3BvcnQvS2hhbGlkIFlvdXN1Zg==" inlink="topic::L3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL1Blb3BsZS9TcG9ydCBzdGFycy9VQUUgc3BvcnQvS2hhbGlkIFlvdXN1Zg==">Khalid Yousuf</a> had a day of extremes on his way to an eventful 71 in the Sheikh Maktoum Dubai Open. The UAE amateur international improved on his first round of 74 to get around in one-under par, and he sits at one over for the tournament. But when things go bad for Yousuf, even on a good streak, it ruins his card. "I got to the turn at two under and I was cruising, absolutely cruising, but then had a terrible back nine," he said. "There were three three-putts and I double bogeyed the short 14th hole. So I ended up with seven birdies, four bogeys and that double. "All I can do now is go away and work at the things that are letting me down. I feel I'm playing pretty well, but when I mess up, I tend to mess up big time." <a href="gopher://topicL3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL1Blb3BsZS9TcG9ydCBzdGFycy9VQUUgc3BvcnQvQWhtZWQgYWwgTXVzaGFycmVraA==" inlink="topic::L3RoZW5hdGlvbmFsL1Blb3BsZS9TcG9ydCBzdGFycy9VQUUgc3BvcnQvQWhtZWQgYWwgTXVzaGFycmVraA==">Ahmed Al Musharrekh</a>, his UAE teammate, also came in with a one-under 71, which followed on from a level-par 72 on Monday that he described as "rubbish". He had a smile back on his face yesterday, which would be been broader if he had holed some more putts. "I played much better today, even if I'm still not happy with the putting," Al Musharrekh said. "If I figure that out, I can score five or six under in my final round. I'm sure of that. I was annoyed at shooting a 72 on Monday, which maybe shows how far I've come. If that's how bad it gets, and I'm still level, then that's OK and something to work with." ncameron@thenational.ae Follow us