Kolkata, Oct 30 (IANS) Aman Raj used all his experience to ensure he stayed on top at the end of a day made tougher by the heavy rains that rendered the grounds at the Tollygunge Golf Club soft and soggy on the second day of the IGPL Invitational Kolkata.
Aman finished his round in near darkness for a round of 3-under 67, which saw a back nine of 3-under as he reached 12-under. He was three shots clear of rookie pro Veer Ganapathy, who shot 1-under 69 in the first round but took good advantage of an early start to shoot 8-under 62 on the second day.
Despite fading light and tough conditions, the golfers stuck to their task and managed to finish the day. The final group, which had the leader Aman Raj alongside Aalaap IL and Syed Saqib Ahmed, putted out on the 18th even when the line for their putts was barely visible.
“Thank God we managed to finish,” said Aman with a smile as he walked off the course.
Veer, who turned pro at the first IGPL event in Chandigarh, closed the overnight gap of six to just one when play was stopped for an hour and 48 minutes in the middle of the day. Veer was 8-under for the day through 15 holes when the stoppage occurred, and when play resumed, he parred the remaining three to be 9-under for 36 holes.
Aalaap, who had a rough start with three bogeys in the first seven holes, made amends on the back nine, where he birdied four times on the 10th, 13th, 15th, and 16th but dropped a shot on the 18th in poor light. Aalaap (65-71) was now 6-under and Tied-third with two-time All India Amateur champion, Aryan Roopa Anand (66-66), producing two very consistent rounds to get to 8-under.
Aryan, who had a fine front nine, closed very strongly with three birdies on the last three holes.
Aman said, “I was all over the place on the front nine, and I dropped shots on the third and the ninth. I got a great chip-in for an eagle on the seventh, and that saved my front nine, as I turned in par. I got lucky on the tenth, when the ball hit a branch and came within 10-12 feet. Then came the stoppage, and I managed to sink for a birdie.”
His round changed after that as he hung with some very good pars and birdies. “I picked birdies on the 13th and the 17th and missed a couple of makeable ones,” added Aman. “Overall, I think I did well to hang in and come back with a 3-under. It was a tough day overall.”
Veer Ganapathy, who is shaping up to be a great talent, said, “My putting was good today. Ever since I began on the IGPL, I have been consistent off the tee and the irons, but putting has been coming and going. Today the putts fell, and I had a good score.”
In 14 rounds since the IGPL began, Ganapathy has had just one over par, which was at Jaypee Greens. The young star, who is coached by his father, Rahul Ganapathy, who is a former All-India Amateur champion and a winner on the pro circuit, feels he is ready for a win. With a round like the 62 he shot on the second day, he could soon be in the winner’s circle.
Syed Saqib Ahmed (66-71) and Yashas Chandra (68-67) were five under and Tied-fifth, while Samarth Dwivedi (67-69) and veteran Chandigarh’s Ranjit Singh (69-67) were tied seventh.
Shaurya Binu (71-66), Kartik Sharma (66-71), Aditya Raj Chauhan (66-71 and Raghav Chugh (68-69) rounded off the Top-10.
The top woman was Ridhima Dilawari (69-70) in Tied-17th place, with Rhea Purvi next best at Tied-21st. She shot 68-72. Also tied 21st was Amandeep Drall (70-70).
The leading amateur was Rahul Ravi (70-68), and he was tied 13th with Aryav Shah (67-71).
Kartik Singh, the young star, had an action-packed front nine with an eagle, three birdies, and four bogeys for a 1-under 33, and on the back nine, he had three birdies and one bogey for a 2-under 34. Kartik, who shot 3-over 73 on Day 1, is now even par for two rounds and Tied-21st with IGPL Pune winner Kapil Kumar (68-72).
–IANS
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