Md Sajib Ali holds advantage on weather-affected second day

Md Sajib Ali 

Dhaka, March 31, 2016: Bangladesh’s Md Sajib Ali held the clubhouse lead at 10-under-134 at the end of the weather-affected second day of the inaugural BTI Open being played at the Kurmitola Golf Club in Dhaka.

Sajib followed up his opening round 66 with a four-under-68 on day two to be two ahead of nearest rival and compatriot Md Dulal Hossain at the INR 35 lakh event. India’s Sujjan Singh was a further shot back, placed third in the clubhouse.

Play was suspended at 1300 hrs local time due to lightning. The break due to suspension lasted two and a half hours as play resumed at 1530 hrs local time. As a result of the suspension, only 63 golfers out of a total of 120 could complete their second round on Thursday. The remaining 57 players will commence their second round at 0700 hrs local time on Friday morning. The cut will be declared after the completion of round two on Friday. The third round will begin soon after the cut is declared on Friday.

Sajib, who was overnight tied second, one off the lead, began his day with a sensational birdie chip-in on the first hole.  The 27-year-old, playing his first season as a professional, gathered three more birdies till the seventh to take the lead early in the day.

Sajib, winner of the Bangladesh Amateur title last year, seemed to be heading for a big lead when he tapped-in for birdie on the 14th, but his tee shot found the trees on the very next hole and resulted in a double-bogey to put the brakes on his round. However, Sajib did manage to pull one shot back with a long birdie conversion on 17.

Sajib, one of Bangladesh’s leading amateurs till 2015, said, “The chip-in on the first was a real morale-booster. Thereafter, I struck my irons well and didn’t leave myself any long putts. The only error was on the 15th. I know another good score of four to five under in round three would make me a top contender.

“The BTI Open is an important tournament for me as I only recently turned professional. A good performance this week will give the much-needed impetus to my fledgling pro career. My hitting has been my strength in the tournament so far but I feel the mental aspect of my game will be tested over the next two days as some of the top Indian and Bangladeshi golfers will make the charge for the title,” added Sajib, who idolizes Phil Mickelson for his brilliant short-game.

Bangladesh’s Md Dulal Hossain (65-71), the first round leader, ended day two in placed second in the clubhouse at eight-under-136 after a second round of 71.

Udayan Mane of India, who completed only 13 holes on Thursday, was also at eight-under. He was three-under for the day with five birdies and two bogeys. Mane dropped a bogey on 13 just before walking off the course as fading light led to close of play for the day.

India’s Sujjan Singh (69-68) produced a hat-trick of birdies for the second straight day to occupy third place among all those who completed their rounds. He made a total of five birdies against a lone bogey on Thursday to take his total to seven-under-137. Sujjan sank a 35-footer on the 13th during round two.

“I got some momentum going with a great par-save on the closing ninth in round one. I had found the water there but recovered really well with a chip-in for par. That was a key moment. I’ve kept the errors down since then in round two,” said Sujjan, a winner on the Asian Development Tour.

The Indian duo of Pratap Atwal and Deepinder Singh Kullar were tied fourth in the clubhouse along with local lad Md Zamal Hossain Mollah at six-under-138.

India’s Ranjit Singh shot the day’s best score of 66 to be tied seventh in the clubhouse at five-under-139 along with compatriot Wasim Khan who fired a 67.

Bangladesh’s top professional Md Siddikur Rahman could only complete 12 holes on day two. He was joint eighth on the leaderboard at five-under. Siddikur was one-over through 12 on Thursday with a birdie and two bogeys.