By Rahul Banerji
Vani Kapoor and Diksha Dagar swapped places on the leaderboard as the home contingent continued to show out well at the Hero Women’s Indian Open on Friday.
At the top, Germany’s Aline Krauter climbed from fourth place overnight into the lead on 7 under par 137, one shot ahead of Vani and two up on Diksha, who exchanged second and third place on a day the lead moved by just one shot.
Krauter, 23, shot a bogey-free round on the day that included two birdies on either side of the turn, picking up shots on the second, fifth, 11th and 14th holes.
The Stuttgart native also played herself out of trouble well, especially om 18 when she recovered from hitting into the greenside bunker.
“My ball striking was really good today. This helps around this course. I left a lot out there around the greens, but I feel like that’s every golf round,’ Krauter, who is seeking to become the second German after 2022 winner Olivia Cowan, said.
Birdie opportunities
“I put myself in great positions and had a lot of birdie chances. I didn’t convert as many as I would have liked, or could have, but it was still a great round.
“My driver shaft was cracked when I got here and I only noticed it on the range warming up for my first practice round. For my second practice round I was able to get one from the performance centre here which was great,
“I had a player (Tvesa Malik) help me out which was super nice. It’s been working well… I might put it in the bag!
“I’ve loved it here so far. I love Indian food which helps and the people are very kind. Overall it’s been great.”
Good numbers
In all, 10 Indians from an entry list of 32 made the 36-hole cut that fell at 6 over par 150, helping 2022 joint runner-up Amandeep Drall (76-74) make it to the weekend on the number. IN all, 64 players including two amateurs went through to the weekend.
Gaurika Bishnoi (72-69), another top 10 finisher in 2022 rose to seventh alongside two-time national champion Avani Prashanth (71-70) on 3 under 141while Mysore amateur Vidhatri Urs (70-74) dropped into a share of 14th place.
“It was quite an up-and-down round,” DLF golfer Vani (68-70) said later. “I would make one birdie and then drop a bogey. But I’m glad that I held on and I’m pretty happy with the round overall.
“It’s really a different feeling (playing at home). I was nervous but I think it’s helping, it’s channelling my goals and my process. It’s so nice to play at your home course and have friends and family here as well as all the DLF members. It’s a brilliant feeling.
Clear priorities
“Obviously keeping my (Ladies European Tour) card is important, but right now I’m not thinking about that. I feel that I’ve come to terms with it, irrespective. I’m still going to be playing golf and I love the sport.
“I feel I’m playing quite well. As I said earlier, my scores have not been reflecting my game. The plan is to go out there and play one shot at a time.”
Added Diksha (67-72), “I didn’t start well but it was all right. Today my putting has let me down. The pin positions were a little bit tougher than yesterday. Also I feel today I made a bad decision in club selection. I should have played a little bit more aggressively.
“Yesterday it was like a bonus round. So today was an easy, comfortable round and I didn’t have to worry much about an under-par round. But I was just trying to go low,” said the left-hander who swapped three birdies for as many bogies.”
Good run
Queen Sirikit Cup winner Avani Prashanth added a 2 under 70 to her first round 71, opening with a birdie and a bogey before reeling off eight pars and three birdies over her next 11 holes. One last bogey would follow but the 16-year-old was satisfied with her day’s work.
“I could have gone lower but a two-under I’ll take it sitting four shots back with 36 holes to go is something I can definitely close out.
“I would definitely say that my caddy helped because I was a little bit losing my mind in the first six holes but he told me that you’ll figure things out at seven, eight and nine and I saw in the morning a lot of people had birdied those three holes.
“On the back nine, the pin positions were very tight. Hole 14 was a little unnecessary from my end but otherwise I’m pretty happy. For sure, looking to the weekend I’m glad I’m not where I was last year but hoping that I can close out the weekend just like I did last year.”
Neat round
Another big mover on the day was Gaurika who had six birdies against three dropped shots to climb 10 places on Friday. “I think the round was really nice,” the DLF Academy trainee said.
“I did bogey my first hole which was my tenth. But I think the six birdies would definitely be a highlight. Shows that I can go really deep over the weekend and I’m going to just carry forward the momentum.
“I’ve had a fantastic season because I’ve played six events, won two and finished second in two more. I haven’t had the opportunity actually to play that much internationally.
“I was also struggling initially a little with my injuries. But everything’s good now, everything’s better. And just finding my momentum again. This is our national Open and I’m just very proud to be representing my country that too at my home course as well.
Also making it through to the weekend were Ridhima Dilawari, Khushi Khanijau, Neha Tripathi, and Nishtha Madan, leaving plenty of hope for the final 36 holes of the event.
Also read: Diksha, Vani in strong home show as Norway’s Stavnar leads HWIO
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