By Rahul Banerji
Gaganjeet Bhullar shot a four-under-par 68 to emerge as a serious contender for the Rs 1.5 crore Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational at Chandigarh Golf Club on Saturday.
Two former winners – Chikkarangappa S. and Karandeep Kochhar – were hot on the leader’s heels in tied second place one shot behind with an exciting finish lying in prospect on Sunday.
Second-round leader Abhijit Singh Chadha slipped to fourth on 11-under 205 after a 72 on Saturday.
Bhullar (69-65-68), a winner of 11 international titles, gained one spot from his overnight second position in a round that featured five birdies and a bogey as his Moving Day went in the right direction.
Bhullar, on 14-under 202, sank birdies on the first and third holes from a range of eight to 12 feet. Chikka and local favourite Kochhar were on 13-under 203s.
After the bogey on four, Bhullar created more opportunities on the front nine but could only manage a birdie on six as he missed some short putts.
On the back nine, Bhullar made a couple of good par saves and birdies on the two par-5s including a great up and down to end the day as sole leader.
Cool putter
Bhullar, originally from Kapurthala and now based in Chandigarh, said, “I struck it well and hit a lot of regulations today but didn’t hole as many putts as the last round.
“My past experiences have taught me that whenever you are in contention over the weekend, minimising unforced errors gives you an opportunity to climb the leaderboard. That was the goal today.
“I play this golf course four times a week. In the past two years I have spent a lot of time in Chandigarh. That’s the reason that I feel at home playing here.
“It’s easy for me to visualise a lot of tee shots here because of the familiarity with the course.”
Chikkarangappa’s (65-71-67) round featured seven birdies and two bogeys and lifted him two spots from his overnight fourth position.
The Bangalore golfer also managed to pull himself out of trouble on a few occasions.
Winner in 2018, Chikka extracted birdies in situations where he found the bunker, trees and the rough, and said later, “It was a great start for me with three birdies on the first five holes.
“My scrambling was good today, I made some amazing up and downs from the bunker and that sort of kept me going and helped build the momentum that finally resulted in a few solid pars.
“The body is feeling good, I feel well-rested and am ready to put up my best effort in the final round.”
Kochhar (65-70-68), the 2020 champion, brought in a card of 68 to move up one spot from his overnight third place.
Consistent hitting
Kochhar said, “I was quite consistent with my hitting today, making 16 greens in regulation. I was also pleased to be error-free. This gives me a good chance in the last round.”
Among the seven players bunched in tied fifth on eight-under 208, were Chandigarh-based Akshay Sharma and Amrit Lal besides Rahil Gangjee, Rashid Khan and Khalin Joshi.
Former Indian Open winner Jyoti Randhawa was tied 13th on six-under 210 while Ajeetesh Sandhu and Udayan Mane were both T28 on four-under 212.
The two amateurs who made the cut, Brijesh Kumar of Chandigarh and Bangalore’s Aryan Roopa Anand, were T52 on three-over 219.
On Friday, Chandigarh’s Abhijit Chadha fire a seven 7-under 65 to take the overall lead even as Bhullar stormed his way into contention with an identical total.
Friday’s cut at one-under 143 saw 55 golfers including two amateurs make the grade. Some of the prominent names to miss included tournament host Jeev Milkha Singh, S.S.P. Chawrasia and Viraj Madappa.
Also read: Former champs Kochhar, Chikka share lead at Jeev Invitational
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