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Golf: Abhinav, Jairaj share halfway lead in Haryana Open
Abhinav, 67-68, and left-hander Jairaj, 66-69, the first-round leader, were tied at the top with totals of nine-under 135 in Haryana Open golf tournament
Haryana golfer Abhinav Lohan’s second round of four-under 68 propelled him into joint lead along with Chandigarh’s Jairaj Singh Sandhu, who shot a three-under 69 on Thursday, at the ₹1 crore Haryana Open 2023 being played at the Panchkula Golf Club.
Abhinav, 67-68, and left-hander Jairaj, 66-69, the first-round leader, were tied at the top with totals of nine-under 135. Akshay Sharma, another Chandigarh golfer, continued his hot streak with a second straight 68 to be placed third at eight-under 136.
Angad Cheema, who signed for the day’s best score of 66, and was tied fourth at seven-under 137, rounds up the list of tricity golfers in the top 10. TATA Steel Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) ranking leader Om Prakash Chouhan shot a 66 to be tied fourth.
The cut went at even-par 144. A total of 53 professionals and two amateurs (out of three) made the cut. Abhishek Kumar of Panchkula was among the amateurs who made the cut.
Abhinav Lohan, tied second woth a mere one off the lead after round one, moved up one spot as a result of his six birdies and two bogeys on Thursday. Lohan, a silver medallist for Haryana in the individual event at the 2022 national games, began on a high with birdies on the first three holes.
Faridabad-resident Abhinav had a quiet stretch till the 13th as he picked up a lone birdie in exchange for two bogeys. He rallied with two more birdies from a range of 10 feet on the last five holes.
Abhinav, a winner on the PGTI, said, “There’s been nothing spectacular about my two rounds so far. However, I’ve managed to get the job done. I’ve dropped just two shots over the first 36 holes and have been hitting it straight, finding greens and putting well.”
Jairaj Singh Sandhu continued at the top for the second day after a round with four birdies and a bogey.
