Indian golfers Anirban Lahiri and Chiragh Kumar shot four-under 67 and 66 respectively to take the joint second spot after the second round of the USD 1 million Venetian Macao Open here on Friday. (Latest Golf News)
World No.39 Lahiri accumulated an eagle on the 18th hole, four birdies (third, fourth, 13th and 14th) against two bogeys (ninth and 16th) to stay on track to successfully defend his title at the Macau Golf and Country Club.
But the 28-year-old Asian Tour leader, who has a two-day total of nine-under 133 — one short of Hung Chien-yao (64) of Chinese Taipei — was disappointed though to drop a shot at his last hole, ninth.
“It leaves a bad taste in the mouth. I hit a good drive and just got stuck in a terrible lie and it was a bad five,” Lahiri said in an Asian Tour release.
“I think I played well, pretty similar to yesterday. But the couple of times I missed the fairway, I found some difficult lies in the rough,” the Bengalurean added.
Chiragh got an eagle on the 13th, alongwith birdies on the second, seventh and eighth holes for a 67 that helped him share the spot with Lahiri, South Korea’s Jeunghun Wang (68) and Brazilian Adilson Da Silva (65).
Australian Scott Hend, winner here in 2013 and runner-up to Lahiri last season, stayed in the hunt with a 68 leaving him two back with countryman Sam Brazel, who charged up the leaderboard with a 66.
Among other Indians in the fray, Rashid Khan (65) and Rahil Gangjee (68) were tied eighth on a 36-hole total of seven-under 135.
Abhijit Chadda (70) and Gaganjeet Bhullar finished tied 14th on 137, while S.S.P. Chawrasia, third in the Asian Tour Order of Merit list, scored 68 to be tied 19th on 138.
Former Asian Tour champion Jyoti Randhawa scored two-over 73 and was lucky to make the cut that was declared at even-par 142.
S. Chikka (71), Shiv Kapur (70), Manav Jaini (71), former Asian Tour champion Arjun Atwal (72), Himmat Rai (74), Kapil Kumar (79) and Khalin Joshi (75), Subhankar Sharma (76) and Angad Cheema (77) missed the halfway cut.
Among the big names who failed to make it to the final 36 holes were four-time Major winner Ernie Els of South Africa and two-time champion Zhang Lian-wei of China.
