Spain’s Vidal hits the front at Delhi Challenge, Kaul is up to T6

Spain’s Quim Vidal on his way into the 54-hole Delhi Challenge lead at the Classic Golf and Country Club near Gurgaon on Saturday. Image courtesy PGTI.

By Rahul Banerji

Spain’s Quim Vidal took a three-shot penultimate round lead in the $300,000 Delhi Challenge with a bogey-free run at the Classic Golf & Country Club near Gurgaon on Friday

Vidal signed for a 6 under par 66 to total 17 under 199 at the joint sanctioned HotelPlanner Tour and PGTI with a flawless round on Saturday that featured four birdies on the last five holes, the PGTI said.

Vidal (65-68-66), who was in a four-way tie for the lead after round two, had Kolkata Challenger champion Joshua Berry (69-66-67) of England as his closest rival on 14 under 202.

Teenager Berry too produced a bogey-free round on Saturday.

Austrians Lucas Nemecz (70) and Maximilian Steinlechner (65) were further shot back on 13 under 203, alongside Davis Bryant (69) of the US.

Kshitij Naveed Kaul (69-66-69) mixed six birdies with three bogeys in the third round to climb one spot to tied sixth on 12 under 204 as the highest-placed Indian in contention.

Arjun Prasad (70) was also in the top 10, sharing 10^th place on 10 under 206.

Honey Baisoya (68), Varun Parikh (70) and Harshjeet Singh Sethie (70) were tied for 15^th on 9 under 207 to make it six Indians in the top 20.

Late surge

Vidal, who landed it close to the flag all day, made a solitary birdie on the front nine followed by a chip-in birdie on 11. He then pocketed four birdies on the last five holes to pull away from the field.

“I didn’t make any mistakes today and left myself short-range putts through the day,” the Spaniard said later.

“It was a windy day but I managed to land the ball in the right spots. Scoring on the par-5s will be crucial on the final day.

“I had a good save on 10 for par and that gave me a little bit of a push for the back nine. Chipped it really close on the par fives, especially for tap-in birdies.

“I stayed calm because on the first nine holes it was a little bit slower. I finally made a good birdie on the eighth after staying patient.

“The course isn’t easy, it is pretty firm and if you aren’t in a good spot, it is really tough. Those 50-to-60-yard shots, you never know how it is going to bounce with the wind. You have to be smart and play your own game.”

Kshitij Naved Kaul hits out of a bunker on the penultimate day of the $300,000 joint sanctioned event to be the best placed Indian for a second straight day. Image courtesy PGTI.

Mixed bag

Kaul, who has been in prime driving form this week, had mixed fortunes on the front nine as he made three birdies and as many bogeys.

The Delhi youngster made a chip-in and a 20-footer for birdies on the front nine but also missed a couple of chip-putts to concede bogeys.

The back nine brought much better returns for Kaul who enjoyed a late surge thanks to three birdies on the last five holes from a couple of quality chip-putts and a 10-foot conversion.

Kaul capitalised on the four Par-5 holes, picking up shots on all of them.

“It was a tough day for scoring with the wind being up and the pin positions also challenging so one had to be very strategic off the tee,” Kaul said.

“I’m happy that I kept myself in the hunt with those late birdies.

“I continued to hit good drives and approach shots. When that happens, usually there is pressure on your putting.

“Fortunately for me, most of my putts today were for birdies. Even when I dropped bogeys, I did not hit any bad shots as such.

“I’ll look to plan well for the final round because the driver may not be the best choice on every hole taking into account the wind and the pin positions.

“Executing my plans will be key and putting well will be equally important.”

Also read: Four in tie for day 2 lead at Delhi Challenger, Kaul is top Indian