Mumbai, Nov 13 (IANS) Vishal Singh of Jaipur extended his overnight lead to two strokes when he returned a three under par 50 in round two of the Aircel-PGTI Players Championship presented by The Willingdon Sports Club here Friday.
Vishal now has a total of nine under 97. Praveen Kumar, Shamim Khan, Randhir Singh Ghotra and Harendra Gupta are joint second at seven under 99.
The event has been curtailed to three stipulated rounds since round one had to be cancelled due to heavy rain on Wednesday and had to be rescheduled for Thursday. The third and final round of the event will now be played on Saturday (November 14, 2009).
The cut was declared at three over 109. Fifty-six professionals and one amateur made the cut.
Vishal Singh (47, 50) began with a bogey on the first but then pulled it back with birdies on the third, fourth, sixth and 11th. He hit his pitching wedge tee shot to within five feet of the flag for birdie on the sixth. Vishal’s lob wedge approach from 70 yards out on the 11th came up within a few inches of the hole and helped him earn a crucial birdie.
The 37-year-old from the Rambagh Golf Club, Jaipur, delighted with his effort in round two, said, ‘I did not get off to a good start today but managed to recover in time. Besides the two top-class birdies on the sixth and 11th, I also had an excellent par save on the 13th, where I sank a 12-footer for par.’
He added: ‘I’m really excited to be playing in the final round leader group for the first time on the Aircel-PGTI. I’ll try to play safe till the turn and will then decide whether to attack the pins or not depending on the situation.’
Noida’s Praveen Kumar, Shamim Khan of Delhi and Chandigarh duo of Randhir Singh Ghotra and Harendra Gupta share second position at seven under 99.
Praveen (50, 49) carded the best score among the four professionals in tied second place. Praveen’s four under 49 was punctuated by six birdies and two bogeys. He found the fringe of the green with his tee shot on the par four fourth hole and two-putted from there (20 feet) to make an important birdie. Praveen was in good putting form as he sank birdie putts from 15 feet and 20 feet on the sixth and 15th respectively.
Praveen said: ‘I hit it well and made some long putts for birdies. I also had an incredible par save on the fifth, where my third shot from 60 feet, stopped five feet from the flag. I’m looking forward to the final round as this has been an extremely good week for me so far. I recently got married and I think that’s one reason why my game has picked up of late.’
Mukesh Kumar is in sixth place at six under 100.
Mohammed Nawab (53, 52) of Patna, who is currently placed tied 18th at one under 105, made a hole-in-one on the 13th during his round of one under 52 on Friday. Nawab’s four-iron tee shot on the 219-yard par three 13th, landed five feet short of the pin before the ball rolled downhill into the hole.
Vishal played an amazing course during that round, especially with that par save that he mentioned himself on the 5th hole. This particular series has been interesting to say the least, especially with all the “technical difficulties” — first the 7th-9th renovations, then the rain delay . I didn’t know that he had a recent marriage, too. That explains why he’s doing so well, of course! Thanks for posting the info :).