June 24, 2018: The floodgates opened without any warning. Anirban Lahiri was right in the middle of a sedate second round before turning up the heat. The Indian took five strokes in a six hole stretch from the eleventh to sit five strokes behind the leader Paul Casey. Russell Henley is in second, four strokes off the pace. Along with Anirban are J.B. Holmes and Brian Harman, at 11-under 199.
The action began early for Anirban before he went into a prolonged phase of simmering in Connecticut. He reached the green in two on the 434-yard par-4 first hole. Anirban sank a birdie from nearly 20 feet out to start his day on a vibrant note.
But Anirban missed a par putt from five feet, as he failed to take advantage of reaching the green in two again on the 341-yard par-4 second.
After making eight straight pars, the action resumed thick and fast on the home stretch. At the par-3 11th hole, Anirban sailed his tee shot within a feet of the flag and he was back to one under for the day.
The day turned even better when Anirban struck a 210 yard approach on the par-5 13th hole. The ball came to a stop, just a foot away from the pin. Anirban made an eagle there.
Anirban drove 265 yards on the 296-yard par-4 15th, affording himself the luxury of two putting for a birdie. This is the first time since Wyndham last year that Anirban scored three straight rounds in the 60s.
“Felt great getting hot
on the back 9 today @travelerschamp,” said Anirban on his Instagram page. “Time to turn up the
#currypower on Sunday!! @ TPC River Highlands”
The Travelers is Anirban’s 76th start and he is seeking to emulate Arjun Atwal and become just the second Indian to win on the PGA TOUR. The Indian is bogey free on the back nine with an eagle and seven birdies so far through 54 holes.
Anirban finished T17 in his only previous appearance at the Travelers Championship in 2017.
