Abhishek Jha leads India Masters

Report by Anand Datla

October 30, 2014: Consistency paid good divdends to Abhishek Jha. The 27 year old is making the most of his knowledge, serving up a second straight 66 on his home course to take a one shot lead at the halfway stage of the Asian Development Tour event. Nils Floren threatened to walk away with a big lead after drilling a 10-under 62 but the Swede was saddled with a 71 from the first round. Jha took the lead at -12, with Floren one shot behind the Indian. Overnight leader Chikkarangappa dropped to third after he could only muster a 70 in the second round.

The cut was declared at five-over-149. Fifty-two professionals and one amateur made the cut. Abhishek Jha, lying third after round one, started day two on a positive note with birdie conversions from 10 to 12 feet on the first and fourth. The highlight of Abhishek’s round was the eagle on the par-5 seventh where he hit the green in two before sinking a 12-footer. The 27-year-old capitalized on the par-5 10th with another birdie. Jha got himself out of trouble on the 17th with a terrific low approach shot through the trees. The shot landed six feet from the cup and earned him his final birdie of the day.

Jha, the 2010 PGTI Emerging Player of the Year, said, “I’ve enjoyed good starts in the first two rounds and that’s helped my cause. The eagle on the seventh lifted my game and the birdie on the 17th was special. I recovered really well on the 17th after a poor drive. Abhishek, yet to win a title on the PGTI, added, “My target coming into this week was to make the cut. But I have reset my plans now. My approach has been to play smart and apply myself on the course. I feel I have the game but I have not always applied myself enough. The idea is to stay level-headed on the course. This is the first time I’m leading an event going into the last two days. I’ll look to grab all opportunities that come my way.”

Swede Nils Floren, who was overnight tied 24th, moved up to second on Thursday after an incredible round of 62 that featured an eagle and eight birdies. Floren, playing his first full season on the Asian Development Tour, holed his second shot from 128 yards on the sixth for an astonishing eagle. The 25-year-old, a resident of Hua Hin in Thailand for the last three years, capitalized on all four par-5s – 10th, 15th, fourth and seventh – with birdies. He tapped-in on all four occasions.

Nils, whose best result has been a runner-up finish at an ADT event in Taiwan this year, also converted 15 to 18 feet birdie putts on the 14th, 18th and third. An excited Floren said, “It’s like a dream round for me. My putting was excellent and I made all the par-5s count. The eagle was unbelievable as I saw the ball go straight to the green and then disappear. I thought I had hit it over the green. But my caddie informed me that I had holed it. However, I didn’t believe him till I actually saw it myself. I saw the pitchmark and realized that the ball had landed just eight inches short of the hole.”
“The birdie on the 18th was very satisfying as my swing for the approach shot was restricted by a tree. Nonetheless, I played my approach to perfection from 80 yards out and landed it on the green before converting an 18-footer,” added the delighted Swede. “I now have a good launch-pad for the last two days and will look to carry the good form forward,” added Nils, who played in India during the 2012 Asian Tour season.”

Bangalore lad Chikkarangappa, the overnight leader, followed up his opening round of 64 with a 70 on day two to slip to third place at 10-under-134. Chikka began the day with an eagle on the 10th where he chipped-in from the bunker. He collected three more birdies before a disastrous triple-bogey on the closing ninth.
Chikka’s second shot landed on top of a tree on the ninth and the ball had to be retrieved by a fore-caddie. He thus took a penalty drop and then fired his fourth shot over the green. The resulting triple-bogey was the only blemish in Chikka’s second round effort. “I’ll try to put this behind me and focus on the next two days. There’s a lot of golf still to be played this week,” said Chikka.

Khalin Joshi, another Bangalore golfer, and Deepinder Singh Kullar of Gurgaon, continued in joint fourth place as both followed up their opening rounds of 67 with scores of 69 in round two. Joshi and Kullar had totals of eight-under-136.  Bangalore’s C Muniyappa shares sixth place at seven-under-137 along with Irishman Niall Turner.

M Dharma, who also hails from Bangalore, lies joint eighth alongside Thailand’s Pijit Petchkasem at six-under-138. R Murthy is the sixth Bangalore golfer in the top-10. He is placed tied 10th at five-under-139 along with Chandigarh’s Ajeetesh Sandhu and Canada’s Lindsay Renolds.

Khalin: I feel I’m ready for the Asian Tour

A confident Khalin Joshi feels he is now ready for the Asian Tour. He is keenly looking forward to the Asian Tour Qualifying School for 2015.

“My game is improving with each passing event and I feel I’m now ready to make the transition to the Asian Tour. The win on the PGTI two weeks back has really lifted my confidence level. I missed out on qualifying for the Asian Tour at the Q School Final Stage earlier this year as I felt I put too much pressure on myself. I feel I’m better prepared for the Asian Tour Q School now as I’m mentally stronger,” said Joshi.