February 25, 2017: Anirban Lahiri is at home and on song. The ace Indian golfer is lying fourth at the halfway stage of the Honda Classic at Palm Beach Gardens in Florida. Anirban produced a steady 68 in the second round to end the day at 7-under 133, just two strokes behind Ryan Palmer and Wesley Bryan. Rickie Fowler is lying third at 8-under with a pair of 66s in the two rounds.
Home away from home
Anirban lives close to the estate, literally “three minutes” to the PGA National Champions Course. After a rocky week in the Genesis Open where he mixed the good with the bad, the 81st ranked player has found his range in Florida.
The jet lag and back spasms that affected him last week are in the rear view mirror now, but Anirban is not one to look backwards. After a solid 65 in the first round at Palm Beach, Anirban started his second with nine straight pars.
“I’m based out of The Bear’s Club and with Mr. Nicklaus nice enough to allow me membership there, so I spend most of my time there,” he told Fatiha Betscher of Golf by Tour Miss.
“There’s always guys to play with, but like I said, I’m not someone who plays a lot of golf. I think we play enough rounds of golf through the year,” explained Lahiri. “If I’m playing 30 weeks, that’s plenty of golf, but not enough time on the range and not enough time to just step away and actually work on the game. So,that’s what I like to do.”
Anirban plays solid golf
At the turn Anirban caught fire, producing three birdies in five holes. The Indian had started his round at the 10th hole, so the birdies came at the first, third and fifth.
Watch the birdie at the par-5 fifth hole – http://www.pgatour.com/players/player.31420.html
“I’m really relaxed this week and it helps that I’m sleeping in my own bed. It’s three minutes to get to the venue,” he told Fatiha. “I’m loving the weather here. It’s really nice. I’m really relaxed.”
Anirban leaked a shot at the par-3 7th hole before coasting home with a pair of even par holes. The effort sets him up nicely as he continues to hunt for his first victory on American soil.
The Indian is playing some spectacular golf this season, without the luck of the lip. His fans will hope that the cup can warm a little more to the Indian’s putter and produce a memorable weekend of winning golf.
