Ahlawat powers his way to pole at Pune Open Golf Championship

By Rahul Banerji

Gurgaon’s Veer Ahlawat powered his way into the Pune Open round three lead with a five-under 61 at the Poona Club Golf Course on Friday.

Even though he dropped a double bogey on his penultimate hole, Ahlawat went into the final day one shot ahead of overnight leader Kapil Kumar of Delhi, who had a three-under 63 on the day.

Chandigarh’s Ajeetesh Sandhu and Sri Lankan N. Thangaraja were tied for third on 13-under 185s at the Rs 40 lakh event.

However, it was Rashid Khan who stole the show with the day’s best round of nine-under 57 and jumped 32 places to tied fifth with Kshitij Naved Kaul on 11-under 187. 

With rain continuing to affect conditions, the first three rounds have been played over 17 holes with par for the course set at 66 instead of the regular 71. 

Ahlawat’s first birdie came on the second hole but that was soon nullified with a bogey immediately after. 

Purple patch

He then hit a purple patch with five birdies on either side of the turn and then added two more to wrap up the day.

Ahlawat would have had a comfortable cushion over Kapil Kumar if not for the double bogey on 17 that left him with the lead on 15-under 183. 

“I was level par after the sixth and was playing steady,” Ahlawat said.

“The birdies on seven and nine helped me gain confidence and continue with the momentum for the next three holes.

“The double bogey on 17 was just unfortunate, but the birdies on 15 and 18 kept me in business.

“I am happy with my game. My objective for the final day will be to stick to the basics with the aim to score better than today.”

Kapil had a sedate round and sits on a 14-under aggregate. After two error-free rounds, he dropped his first shot of the tournament on the 16th hole.

Kumar also had four birdies.

Flying start

Rashid went all guns blazing on the day with a fantastic 57 to jump his way into contention with a clean card that included four birdies in the first nine holes.

After the turn he picked up a further five shots and said, “I started from the back nine and made two birdies from tough spots on the 10th and 12th holes.

“That gave me a lot of confidence and I then looked for a score of seven to eight under. I am happy that I could realise my plans as the wedge shots and chip-putts were very good today.”

Another impressive performance came from Ludhiana golfer Pukhraj Singh Gill who carded a seven-under 59 with the help of two eagles to be tied seventh with Gurgaon’s Kartik Sharma on 10 under 188s.

Also read: Kapil Kumar stays ahead at weather-affected Pune Open