Abhishek Jha, precariously placed at 62nd in the Rolex
Ranking, made an ideal start at the penultimate event of the 2015 PGTI season,
with nine birdies against a lone bogey. Jha thus set himself up to make it into
the top-60 of the money list which is the cut-off to earn exemption for the
2016 PGTI season.
The 29-year-old Abhishek, who hails from the Eagleton Golf
Resort near Bengaluru, backed up his consistent hitting with some crucial
conversions on the greens on an overcast and gloomy day.
Jha, the tallest Indian professional, at six feet five
inches in height, got off to a terrific start with three straight birdies from
10th to 12th thanks to two tap-ins and one 20-feet putt. His bogey on
the 13th, after a poor approach, came against the run of play.
However, the lanky lad, who has grown up playing alongside
the likes of city-mates Anirban Lahiri and Chikkarangappa, came roaring back
with six more birdies which featured two 12-feet conversions and a couple of
chip-putts.
Abhishek, yet to register his first professional win, said,
“I’ve been playing well for the last few months but the putts haven’t been
rolling in for me. Today, I not only struck it well but also holed all the
putts that mattered. The 50-feet par save on the second was a real confidence
booster and was like a bonus. I had almost given up that hole as a bogey.
“There are scoring opportunities at this course but one
needs to play it smart and place it well off the tees. One cannot muscle his
way around at this venue. I need a good outing here since my best this year has
only been 14th place. It’s the first time we’re playing Golmuri as an
18-hole course for the whole week. It’s been an enjoyable experience so far,”
added Jha.
Honey Baisoya, who had finished third at the last PGTI event
in Mumbai with a final round of six-under, seemed to have carried his form to Jamshedpur since he
opened the week with a seven-under-64 that was punctuated by eight birdies and
a solitary bogey. He sank a 35-footer for birdie on the fifth and drove two
consecutive par-4 greens for birdies on the 12th and 13th.
Baisoya, who currently lies 21st in the Rolex Ranking,
said, “I was a little disappointed with my poor form last year. It took me a
long time to recover from it mentally. But this year I’ve focused on
strengthening the mental aspect of my game and on my putting and the results
are there to see. I’m now in a strong position this year and want to end the
season on a high.”
The quartet of Noida golfers Amardip Sinh Malik and Vikrant
Chopra, Panchkula’s Angad Cheema and Faridabad ’s
Abhinav Lohan shot bogey-free scores of six-under-65 to be joint third.
Defending champion Om Prakash Chouhan of Mhow was in tied 20th place
after his first round of two-under-69.
Karan Taunk of Jamshedpur posted a three-over-74 to be tied
77th.
PGTI Press release
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