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With two-under, Lahiri in top-10 after Day 2
Battling a bad back and rain, Indian star within three shots of leader Jason Kokrak.
Anirban Lahiri again proved his mettle in tough playing conditions, battling his way up the leaderboard and into contention going into the weekend of Asian Tour’s $2 million International Series England.
The hilly terrain of Close House, saturated with incessant rain earlier in the week, is proving to be a monster. The walk and the cold haven’t been an ideal combination for Lahiri’s back, which has been giving him trouble since his LIV Golf outing a couple of weeks ago in Greenbrier.
Lahiri was seen stretching his back for a protracted period in his first round of one-under par 70 on Thursday, but on an even colder day, added a two-under par 69 to be inside the top-10 and within three shots of the leader in the clubhouse, and his playing partner, Jason Kokrak (6-under par).
Another Indian star, Gaganjeet Bhullar, also put together a great round except for a closing bogey that left him frustrated with a four-under par 67. However, at 1-over par total, he will definitely make it to the weekend as well.
Over the past couple of years, Lahiri seems to have saved the best for Saturdays. Even last week at Bedminster, on a difficult course, he shot a seven-under par 64 – the lowest round of the tournament – which helped him climb to his eventual second-place finish.
“I hope so,” said the 36-year-old from Bengaluru. “Today, I think the body kind of moved a lot better. I put some work in last night, this morning. Just got to make sure that I keep on top of those things.
“It was a short turnaround time after last week and with all the travel. I’m feeling a little more comfortable with the golf course now.
“Well, I had a good Saturday last week, had a great Saturday in Adelaide and in Vietnam. I guess you need to have a good Saturday if you want to have a good weekend. Let’s put it that way. So hopefully, I can have a good one tomorrow. Still a lot of golf to be played, so no point getting ahead of myself.”
On the state of his back, Lahiri said: “It’s something I’ve been fighting a little. It’s kind of popped up after Greenbrier. My lower back was getting a little tight because I was having some tightness through my legs and things like that.
“I think a little bit of that has to do with probably not warming up as much as I would have liked yesterday. I just felt like I was not quite ready for the week. To be honest, I needed one more good night’s sleep. I think yesterday I overslept, and I was late and I just started on my routines late. It obviously showed during the round with the cold and the rain and everything else. But I feel much better with the body. I’ll keep working on it.”
Bhullar spoils finish
Bhullar shot 67 despite losing his ball on the seventh hole, the only time he had a bad tee shot.
“I drove the ball well and missed only one and it was a shame I lost the ball on that hole. But other than that, it was a smooth round. My putting was on point and it was just good momentum and I kept making birdies at the right time and holed some good putts for par,” said Bhullar. With nine titles, Bhullar is the most successful Indian player in the history of Asian Tour.
“It was disappointing to finish with a bogey, because I thought I probably played one of my best rounds of the year, especially given the conditions. I made a very good putt on the 18th from eight feet and had the right line, but just kept a little short. But I think it was a good run and I am playing well and looking forward to the weekend.”
