St Andrews (Scotland), Aug 26 (PTI) Gaganjeet Bhullar, India’s most successful player on the Asian Tour, turned in a super round of 5-under 67 which took him to T-11 on the second day of the St Andrews Bay Championship.
With rounds of of 69-67, Bhullar is 8-under at the halfway stage of the sixth International Series event of the season on the Asian Tour.
Anirban Lahiri (66-71) suffered an early double bogey but made amends and then finished birdie-birdie on his closing two holes for a round of 1-under 71.
At 7-under, he has dropped to T-15 from tied first.
Another first round leader, Veer Ahlawat (66-71) also dropped to T-15 alongside Lahiri.
Spaniard David Puig, 21, who turned pro last September, put himself in the perfect position to try and win his first title as a professional when he opened up a three-shot lead at the halfway point.
Puig shot a spectacular eight-under-par 64, the lowest round of the week so far, to reach 14-under, with South African Jaco Ahlers (66-67) in second place, following a 67.
Of the 14 Indians participating, eight made the cut.
Ajeetesh Sandhu (70-68) played a bogey-free 68 and moved to T-21, while SSP Chawrasia (69-71) and Rahil Gangjee (70-70) were T-39 with Viraj Madappa (67-73), who had two bogeys and one double in his last five holes between the 14th and the 18th.
The only other Indian to make the cut was Rashid Khan (70-71) at T-57.
The six Indians missing the cut were S Chikkarangappa (71-71), Honey Baisoya (73-69), Karandeep Kochhar (77-70), Jyoti Randhawa (75-73), Khalin Joshi (74-74) and Kartik Sharma (76-75).
Australians Matt Jones (65) and Andrew Dodt (68), Eugenio Chacarra (66) from Spain, England’s James Wilson (66), American Micah Lauren Shin (67), Korean Seungtaek Lee (67) and Chile’s Mito Pereira (68) are in a tie for third, four behind Puig.
Players took advantage of the bright and calm conditions at Fairmont St Andrews, where the Torrance Course is being used, to shoot low scores.
Puig once again excelled, making nine birdies, to go with the 10 he made on day . Six of those birdies came on the back nine, including the last four.
Source: PTI News
