DAY 2
DAY 1

September 2nd 2010, Chandigarh: Vinod Kumar and Mukesh Kumar are the joint leaders after round three of the PGTI Players Championship presented by Chandigarh Golf Club. The two are tied at the total score of nine under 207. While Vinod produced a dramatic three under 69 on Thursday, Mukesh carded a solid 70. Local favourite Harendra Gupta stayed in contention with a 70 as he ended the penultimate round in third place, one shot adrift of the joint leaders.

Vinod Kumar (72-66-69) seemed to be in sublime form during the first half of the round as his magnificent hitting and iron-play resulted in five birdies on the first 11 holes. The Delhi golfer had opened up a four-stroke lead over nearest rival Mukesh Kumar by the 11th hole.

Mukesh then staged a remarkable fight-back as he sank three birdies in succession from the 12th through the 14th to lead by one shot, even as Vinod, who lost the balance between caution and aggression, slipped with bogeys on the 12th and 13th. The lead exchanged hands once again when Mukesh dropped a bogey on the 15th and Vinod birdied the 16th and 17th to go ahead by two strokes.

Vinod, however, stumbled on the final hole, where his first two shots were way off the mark and led to a double bogey. He thus ended the day as the joint leader along with Mukesh.

Vinod said, “I was striking it beautifully on the first 11 holes. I was hitting it very close and even sank a 25 feet birdie putt on the fifth. I had to then pay the price for some poor chipping and putting on the 12th and 13th and a couple of bad shots on the 18th. Nonetheless, I played a wonderful chip from 60 yards to recover well on the final hole.”

“If I can repeat today’s performance in round four, I think I’ll have a good chance. But outplaying Mukesh on the final day is quite a task and I cannot afford a lapse in concentration,” added Vinod.

Mukesh said, “I did not score as well as I had expected to in round three. My hitting let me down. The two crucial moments today were my chip-in for birdie on the 12th and Vinod’s double-bogey on the 18th. My birdie on the 12th got me back into the game. I also made a mammoth 25 feet putt for birdie on the 14th.”

Mukesh added, “Vinod Kumar can be a tough player to beat in round four if he continues his good hitting form. Harendra Gupta on the other hand, can also be quite a handful on the final day as he enjoys the advantage of playing in home conditions.”

Harendra Gupta (69-69-70) made five birdies against three bogeys on day three to stay in contention at eight under 208.

Gaurav Pratap Singh is a further stroke behind in fourth place and could also pose a challenge for the title.

Arshdeep Tiwana’s 64 was the best round of the tournament so far and helped him climb from overnight tied 32nd to tied fifth. Tiwana’s third round score was the lowest ever at the Chandigarh Golf Club but unfortunately it did not qualify as the official course record because due to the monsoon conditions preferred lies were in operation.

Tiwana, a winner on the PGTI Feeder Tour this season, said, “It was an ideal round of golf. I made most fairways today since I was quite accurate off the tee. I also had 17 greens in regulation. The putter was hot today as I holed it from 46 feet for birdie on the 14th and made two birdie putts from over 20 feet on the third and fifth.”

Arshdeep, in his rookie season on the Aircel-PGTI, currently shares fifth place along with Chiragh Kumar and Ashok Kumar at five under 211.

Shankar Das of Kolkata, who made a hole-in-one on the 185-yard third hole, is joint eighth along with Amardip Sinh Malik at four under 212. Das’ six-iron tee shot bounced right of the hole and rolled downhill into the cup.

“This is my first hole-in-one in a tournament. It was an amazing sight to see it roll in,” said Das, who shot a 71 on Thursday.