Local golfers showcased their dominance on the penultimate day of the INR 1 crore Haryana Open 2023 at the Panchkula Golf Club, with Chandigarh’s Akshay Sharma surging into the lead. Akshay Sharma carded the week’s lowest score of seven-under 65, establishing a two-stroke lead with a total of 15-under 201. Another Chandigarh-based professional, Jairaj Singh Sandhu, claimed the second spot after a solid round of 68.
The duo of Honey Baisoya (66) and Abhinav Lohan (69), representing the DLF Golf & Country Club, were also in contention as they jointly occupied third place with a total of 12-under 204.
Chandigarh’s Yuvraj Singh Sandhu found himself in sixth place at 10-under 206, while Angad Cheema was tied for 10th at eight-under 208. PGTI Ranking leader Om Prakash Chouhan (71) shared the 10th position.
Kolkata’s Shankar Das made a hole-in-one on the second hole during his round of 71, securing a tied 30th place at three-under 213. Among the two amateurs who made the cut, Umed Kumar held the higher position, tied for 47th at two-over 218.
Akshay Sharma (68-68-65), who previously claimed two titles at the Panchkula Golf Club in 2020, capitalized on his fond memories of the course during his impressive performance on Friday. After a cautious start with three pars and an early bogey, he gained momentum with three birdies. His second bogey of the day on the ninth hole was his last misstep.
The 33-year-old Akshay Sharma, currently eighth on the PGTI’s money list with two runner-up finishes in the last three events, had an outstanding back nine, recording six birdies to seize the sole lead. On the third day, Akshay impressively converted six birdies from a range of 10 to 25 feet.
Akshay stated, “I wasn’t happy with my short game yesterday, but today it was my chipping and putting that stood out. I made 24 putts in all, including long-range putts and a few chips very close to the pin.”
Jairaj Singh Sandhu, a 26-year-old left-hander, also made a strong start (66-69-68) and was one of the joint halfway leaders. He began with a remarkable 30-foot birdie conversion on the second hole and followed it with an eagle-two on the third, where he holed it from 40 yards. Jairaj, in pursuit of his maiden title, added another birdie on the ninth but experienced a mixed back-nine with three birdies and three bogeys.
-IANS
