Anirban Lahiri makes the cut in Paris

Edited by Anand Datla

July 04, 2015: Anirban Lahiri is the lone remaining Indian as the Alstom Open de France rolls into an exciting weekend, with a bunch of contenders chasing the title vacated by Graeme McDowell. The Irishman’s hopes for a hattrick were left in tatters after he made a 78 in the second round. Lahiri was six over 77 in the second round, but he squeezed into the weekend just above the cut line, courtesy the 69 in the first round. Jeev Milkha Singh and Shiv Kapur were not fortunate, slipping out quietly after closing Friday at 8-over 150.

Singh was two under through six holes but six bogeys from there put paid to his hopes for an extended stay in Paris. Kapur, who started on the back nine made two bogeys on either stretch, besides a double at the second hole in his second round 75.

Lahiri was one under through the front nine, but five bogeys and a double at the final hole dropped him to T57. The 28 year old made a hat-trick of bogeys from the 15th before signing out with a double bogey at the final hole in his 77.

Victor Dubuisson continued to delight the locals at Le Golf National by grabbing a share of the halfway lead at the Alstom Open de France. The 25 year old carded a second round 70 to join playing partner and Ryder Cup team-mate Martin Kaymer and Spain’s Rafa Cabrera-Bello on four under par.

Cabrera-Bello and Dubuisson had both been part of a four-way tie for the lead once the delayed opening round was completed first thing this morning, and it was the in-form Spaniard who set the morning target as a second round 70 put him in the clubhouse on four under.

Dubuisson looked to be taking command of the tournament when he birdied the fifth and holed his approach to the sixth for eagle to reach six under, but in more testing conditions bogeyed the eighth and ninth.

Kaymer birdied the latter from 15 feet to turn in 34 and join the leaders, with Dubuisson converting from the back of the 12th green to retake the lead. Two-time Major winner Kaymer converted another chance at the 13th and the pair remained locked together until the German found water with his approach to the 15th and double bogeyed.

But Dubuisson failed to get up and down from beside the 17th green and Kaymer birdied the last from 15 feet after the Frenchman narrowly failed to chip in for a gain of his own, to set up an exciting battle over the weekend.

“I played very well,” said Dubuisson, whose only previous European Tour victory came in the 2013 Turkish Airlines Open. “On this course, when you start to make one bogey, two bogeys, then you think that it can turn really bad, but I had a great round and I’m very happy about the way I played today. It was really tough out there with the wind this afternoon.”

Kaymer missed the cut in his defence of the US Open two weeks ago and on home soil in Munich last time out, and was excited to be involved at the top of the leaderboard once more. “It’s been a few months since I’ve been in one of the last groups of a tournament,” said the 30 year old, who won here in 2009. Obviously I enjoy this golf course and have had success here.”

“The crowds are behind me and playing with Victor the last couple of days was good fun, too. A lot of people were following our group, so I think it’s going to be an exciting weekend.”

Cabrera-Bello has finished fourth, 13th, second and 11th in his last four events, but bogeyed the 72nd hole in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open to miss out on a play-off and shot rounds of 74 and 71 after taking the halfway lead in Munich last week. The 31 year old turned in a one under par 34, but bogeyed the fifth before holing a ten foot birdie effort at the next.

Another dropped shot followed on the seventh after his decision to chip from the green backfired, but he converted from 20 feet on the next to bounce back once more.

“Obviously the scoring has been good; two consecutive rounds under par on this course is very good,” said Cabrera-Bello. “It’s a very tough course. There is less rough this year, but it is still hard.

“The best thing about it is I haven’t had really much, much trouble. I’ve made some bogeys of course, but never put myself in position of shooting a high number. Obviously some things have been going wrong because my scoring during the first two days, or even Saturday, as well, compared to Sunday is not quite the same. But I’m working on that. I’m going to keep knocking on the door and one day it will open.”

Italy’s Francesco Molinari, South African Jaco Van Zyl and English trio Daniel Brooks, Tyrrell Hatton and James Morrison are all one off the pace on three under, with only 17 players under par for their two rounds.

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