Om Prakash Chouhan, Sachin Baisoya, Rai lead jointly of INR 80 lakh IndianOil SERVO Masters

Our Correspondent

DIGBOI: TATA Steel PGTI Ranking leader Om Prakash Chouhan of Mhow, Delhi’s Sachin Baisoya and Nepal’s Sukra Bahadur Rai were the joint clubhouse leaders at a total of nine-under 135 after day two of the INR 80 lakh IndianOil SERVO Masters 2023 being underway at the Digboi Golf Links.

The one-hour fog delay at the start of round two on Thursday meant play could only get underway by 0700 hrs local time. As a result, round two could not be completed on Thursday when play was suspended due to fading light at 1630 hrs. Twenty-two players out of a total of 122 are yet to complete their second round. Round two would now resume at 0700 hrs on Friday while round three would commence after the completion of round two and the announcement of the cut.

Meanwhile, Kapil Kumar, Mohd Azhar and Sri Lanka’s Anura Rohana were tied for fourth at eight-under 136.

However, Sukra Bahadur Rai (68-67) made a bogey on the fifth before rallying with birdies on the next four holes, capitalizing on two par-5s and leaving himself four-footers on the other two holes. Sukra, also known as ‘Venus’ on his local tour in Nepal, made further in-roads with two more birdies on the back-nine including a 12-feet conversion on the 12th.

Sukra said, “After an early setback on the fifth, I really gained in confidence thanks to the birdies on the sixth and seventh that set up the day for me. My ball-striking was the best part of my game today as it set up most of my birdies.

“I enjoy playing here at Digboi as this golf course is quite similar to the ones I play in Nepal in terms of the slopes on the fairways and the type of greens. I feel quite at home playing here.”

Om Prakash Chouhan (67-68) came up with an eagle, four birdies and two bogeys while Sachin Baisoya (66-69), currently second on the TATA Steel PGTI Ranking, produced four birdies and a bogey. The highlight of Chouhan’s round was the chip-in from the hazard for eagle on the 15th.

Among the Digboi-based professionals, Dulal Kalowar (one-under 143) and Deven Bhumij (even-par 144) were the best placed.

Noida-based amateur Aarav D Shah, an Australian national, was the highest placed among the three amateurs as his total read even-par 144.

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