Golf: 12-year-old in top three at New Zealand Amateur Championship

First it was Lydia Ko and now New Zealand gold has another precocious kid matching it with the best.

After two rounds of qualifying at the New Zealand Amateur Championship at Royal Wellington, 12-year-old Jayden Ford sits third in the men's field of 92.

Ford followed a first-round 69 on Wednesday with a second effort of 72 to sit on one-under for the tournament, trailing only Luke Toomey (two-under) and leader Shaun Campbell (four-under).

"He played out of his skin [on Wednesday], the best I've seen him play," father and caddie Glynn told Fairfax Media. "He was just on, especially for the conditions. For him the course is playing very long with it being so wet and soft."

Ford will now head into the top-32 matchplay tomorrow with his eye on advancing into the final eight, not a bad effort from a tournament he entered only because it was close to his house.

"He seems to take it in his stride," Glynn said of his son. "He likes to watch and learn and see what they're doing, but at the same time he gets into his own rhythm and plays his own game.

"He'll take some confidence into the matchplay. Anything from here is a bonus. He's done awesomely to get to this point. As parents we're super pleased and very proud."