Anirban Lahiri soars into contention at Corales Championship

He has been waiting patiently to bring his best golf to the big stages. After enduring plenty of heartbreak through a tough 2019, Anirban Lahiri used the coronavirus lockdown to work with his longtime coach and mentor Vijay Divecha. At the start of the new season, the hard work is beginning to pay rewards. Lahiri shot a spectacular 8-under 64 to leap into contention at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club in the Dominican Republic. Arjun Atwal continued his inspiring run with a 69, moving to 6-under through 54 holes. Nate Lashley made a 65 to gain the clubhouse lead at 12-under.

Overnight leader Hudson Swafford (-12) was yet to tee off by the time Lahiri (-11) finished his bogey-free round. It contained four birdies on either side as he put on an impressive moving day performance to move inside the top ten. The Indian is 11-under at the end of his third round. Meanwhile, Nate Lashley joined Swafford at 12-under with four holes left to play in his round.

Adam Long emulated Lahiri later in the day, shooting 64 to gain a two-stroke advantage over Hudson Swafford. Long was 17-under at the end of an exiciting third round. Swafford was at 15-under with a 69 to his name. Xinjun Zhang (68) was at 13-under just one-stroke behind third placed Mackenzie Hughes who shot 67 on Saturday.

Anirban warmed up with a birdie at the 410yard par-4 third hole. He took steam with a hat-trick of birdies ahead of the turn, going past the bend in just 32 strokes. He wasn’t done though as he picked up birdies at the 11th and 14th holes to inch up the leaderboard. He cemented his place near the top, T2 at one point, with an emphatic finish. Lahiri produced birdies on the 16th and 18th, securing a 64.

Atwal stayed even on the forward stretch, with two birdies – at the fourth and seventh holes. The 47-year-old shot four birdies on the back nine to jump 17 spots with a 69.

“It was a really good round today. I struggled on the way home yesterday, lost my concentration. I gifted a few shots and also played poorly with my irons. My hip was also tight, so had to get some body work done,” said Anirban.

I went back and had a long conversation with Vijay. We went through a few notes that we made up during my time in India.”

“I started the day, got into a positive frame of mind with my irons. I hit some good shots and even though I three-putted the fourth, did not let that affect me. I stuck to my process and get some momentum through the round and finish with a couple of birdies at the end. It is nice to go into Sunday with an outside chance.”

Anirban Lahiri

Anirban leapt over 50 spots with one of his most rewarding rounds on the PGA TOUR, setting up an exciting finish, especially for his fans in India. The 64 is the low score this week, halfway through the third round. Incidentally, Graham DeLaet shot 64, but that wasn’t enough to help him make the weekend as he had suffered a 78 in the opening round.