Sport - Golf

Lahiri in lead

GREATER NOIDA: Anirban Lahiri’s flawless performance gave him a comfortable three-stroke lead after the second round of the Rs. 1 crore BILT Open tournament at the Jaypee Greens Golf Resort here on Friday.

A joint leader overnight, Lahiri scored a seven-under 65 in the second round for a total of 131 at the half-way stage.

The 22-year-old started on the back nine and gained a shot each on the 12th, 14th and 18th holes. His nine-iron tee shot on the par-three 14th landed just a foot away from the hole for an easy birdie.

After three more birdies on the first, second and fourth, Lahiri sunk a 15-foot putter on the seventh. The best treat for the spectators, however, came at the close, when the Bangalore pro’s brilliant bunker shot travelled around 45 yards before stopping a few inches shy of the ninth hole. That saved a crucial par for Lahiri.

“It was important for me to save par on the last hole today to keep the momentum going,” Lahiri said. “I am glad that I took advantage of the par-five holes and made them count.”

Meerut golfer Amardip Sinh Malik’s six-under round helped him reach the second spot with an aggregate of 134. Beginning his day on the 10th hole, the 24-year-old had five birdies and an eagle (on the fourth) before dropping a shot on the eighth.

Fifty-two players made the cut, which was decided at three-over 147.

The scores: Anirban Lahiri (66, 65) 131; Amardip Sinh Malik (68, 66) 134; Himmat Singh Rai (68, 67) 135; Vikrant Chopra (66, 70), Harendra P. Gupta (68, 68) and Mukesh Kumar (70, 66) 136; Naman Dawar (72, 65) 137; Digvijay Singh (71, 67) and Manav Jaini (71, 67) 138; Rajiv Niranjan Datar (67, 72) 139; Ajeetesh Sandhu (67, 73) and Ashok Kumar (70, 70) 140; Rahil Gangjee (68, 73), Sheeraz Kalra (72, 69), Kunal Bhasin (70, 71), Ranjit Singh (72, 69), Harmeet Kahlon (69, 72) and Sujjan Singh (70, 71) 141; Shankar Das (70, 72), Gurbazz P.S. Mann (70, 72) and Sanjay Kumar (70, 72) 142.

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