Yashas storms ahead, Angad slips

Tribune News Service

Panchkula, May 9

Yashas Chandra stormed into the lead with the day’s best score of 7-under 65 in the third round of the TATA Steel PGTI Players Championship at the Panchkula Golf Club here on Thursday. 

The 24-year-old Karnataka golfer, playing only his second season as a professional, jumped 11 positions from his overnight tied 12th to go one clear of the field at 10-under 206.

Chandigarh’s Yuvraj Singh Sandhu (71) hung on to his overnight second place to be hot on the leader’s heels at 9-under 207.

Interestingly, there is a prospect of witnessing a new champion on the Tour on Friday, as both Yashas and Yuvraj are yet to win a PGTI title.

Panchkula’s Angad Cheema, the half-way leader, shot a 75 on Thursday that saw him slip to tied-fifth and three off the pace.

Yashas Chandra (67-74-65), currently placed eighth on the PGTI Order of Merit, had made a brilliant start to the week with a 67 that was punctuated with a record three eagles. However, he dropped off the radar with an ordinary second round (74) that placed him seven shots behind the lead. 

On Thursday, he was back in the mix, following a 65 that featured as many as nine birdies and a double-bogey.

Yashas’ birdies on the first two holes were negated by his double-bogey on the fourth where he found the bushes with his tee shot. Thereafter, it was one-way traffic for the Mysusru golfer as his precise hitting and consistent putting earned him seven more birdies, including the one on the par-4 11th, where he drove the green.

“My ball-striking, bunker shots and putting were spot-on today. I had 15 greens in regulation and made 27 putts. The momentum has been building up well for me this year. I’m growing in confidence with each passing event,” Yashas said after the day’s play.

“I’ve so far not been able to put four good rounds together. I’ve shot at least one poor round in all the recent events. I want to improve on that aspect of my game,” he said.

“It’s a tight leaderboard, so the final round will be all about staying patient. There are quite a few players in the leading pack who are capable of shooting a low number on the final day. The key for me would be to keep the errors out and try to shoot a score of about 4 to 5-under,” Yashas added.

Yuvraj (71-65-71), who had produced the second day’s best round, continued to be in the hunt on the third day as a result of his 71 that featured four birdies, a bogey and a double-bogey. 

Sandhu was in a spot of bother when he made the turn at 2-over. However, he pulled it back with three birdies on the back-nine.

Noida’s Gaurav Pratap Singh made waves on Day 3 as he climbed from tied 12th to tied third, thanks to his error-free 67. His tournament tally stood at 8-under 208.

Mukesh Kumar (71) of Mhow continued to be in tied third for the second consecutive day.

Angad Cheema sank a lone birdie in exchange for two bogeys and a double-bogey during his round of 75. Cheema thus dropped four spots to be tied fifth at 7-under 209. Om Prakash Chouhan (71) of Mhow also took a share of the fifth.

Delhi’s Rashid Khan (73) and Pune-based Udayan Mane (71) occupied tied seventh place at 6-under 210.

Jyoti Randhawa (68) moved up to tied 11th at 4-under 212, while defending champion N Thangaraja (70) of Sri Lanka was in tied 20th at 2-under 214.