Anand Datla
August 04, 2016: Amandeep Drall retained a two shot lead at the end of the second round of the twelfth leg on the Hero Women’s Professional Golf Tour. The WGAI event is being hosted at the Hyderabad Golf Club for the first time and the field has been struggling to come to terms with the intricacies of the course. There was no under par score for the second day running, with a 73 by Sharmila Nicollet the best effort so far. Amandeep shot 74 to end the day at 9-over 151, two ahead of Nicollet.
The top two women both shot three birdies each in their round to stay ahead of the field. Amandeep made three pairs of bogeys – two on the front nine and one on the return stretch. Curiously, they were all back to back losses for the leader.
Sharmila made a double bogey at the par-4 fifth hole besides three other bogeys in the second round. It was a solid effort from one of the most sought after Indian golfers, after a dismal 80 in the first round.
Neha Tripathi and Meher Atwal made 77 each as they settled in behind Amandeep and Sharmila. Neha was lying third at 14-over 156 while Meher was a further shot back at 157.
Nikki Ponappa, Ayesha Kapur and Shweta Galande were lying in fifth at 159. Nikki and Ayesha made 78 each as they mirrored each other’s scores for a second day running. Both women made 81 on Wednesday.
A determined Afshan Fatima produced a remarkable turnaround, finding a ten shot swing from her bag. The young upstart came up with a 75 today, recovering to the middle of the table.
Saaniya Sharma and Ankita Tiwana rounded off the top ten going into the final round, with an overall score of 19-over 161.
