Chandigarh, Mar 12 (PTI) Aman Raj, who battled injuries last season, jumped to the top of the leaderboard, reaching 11-under to be four shots clear of Gaganjeet Bhullar at the halfway stage of the IGPL season-opener at the Chandigarh Golf Club, here on Thursday.
The 30-year-old from Patna, who won twice last season, shot a brilliant 8-under 64 after his opening round 69 to put himself in a very strong position.
Bhullar, India’s most successful player on the Asian Tour with 11 titles, followed his opening 68 with a 71 to be second at seven-under.
IGPL debutant Varun Parikh carded a 67 after a first-round 71 to lie third at six-under.
A group of four players — Kapil Kumar (70-69), local veteran Ranjit Singh (70-69), Manav Shah (69-70) and defending Order of Merit champion Gill (70-69) — were tied fourth at five-under.
Yashas Chandra (68-72) and Chiragh Kumar (69-71) shared eighth place at four-under.
Amateur Harjai Milkha Singh, son of Jeev Milkha Singh, shot a 69 to be tied 10th at three-under alongside Karandeep Kochhar (70-71) and Sachin Baisoya (72-69).
Last year Aman had finished second behind Pukhraj in the race to the IGPL Order of Merit by less than Rs. 9,000.
Aman, however, is not taking it easy and said Bhullar can still close in on.
“Bhullar can come back from any deficit. He is an amazing player. He showed that last year in the IGPL with his consistency,” Aman said.
On his own game, Aman said, “I started with a duff on the first hole but still birdied it. It was that kind of a day. I had my troubles off the tee, but my short game was superb and that carried me through the day.” “I just need to be more consistent. Yes, I am not totally free from niggles, but I realise that I need to adjust and do my best. Today was one of the good days. Must have more of them.” Bhullar, who was bogey free in the first round of 68, had one bogey and four bogeys on the second.
“Ironically I hit the ball well and have been playing very well. But these last two days I have not scored well. I had many chances for birdies on both days but didn’t convert many. That’s what I need to work on. Otherwise, the game looks fine, and I am looking forward to a good season,” he said.
Bhullar won three times in 2025 and was third on the IGPL Order of Merit last year despite playing only about half of the event as he was also playing the International Series and Asian Tour. PTI TAP AH AH
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