Hyderabad, Sep 27 (PTI) Sri Lanka’s N Thangaraja carded a magnificent eight-under 62 as he jumped to a four-shot lead with an aggregate of 13-under 127 at the end of second round in the Telangana Golconda Masters here on Friday.
Chandigarh’s Angad Cheema shot a 63, whereas Stepan Danek of the Czech Republic came up with a 65, while Saarthak Chhibber of Delhi shot a 68, with the trio tied second at nine-under 131.
On a bright and sunny day, the cut came down at one-under 139, as 51 golfers made the cut.
Thangaraja (65-62), a four-time winner on the PGTI tour, was tied sixth and two off the lead after the opening round.
But, he skyrocketed to the top following a second straight error-free round, featuring two eagles and four birdies.
Thangaraja, who last won on the PGTI a year ago in Visakhapatnam, started the day by making an eagle from four feet on the Par-5 10th.
His excellent driving set him up his second eagle of the day, driving the green on the Par-4 14th to leave himself a seven-footer, and he eventually converted it.
Following his inspired start, Thanga persisted with his upward rise, collecting four more birdies on the 17th, 18th, second and sixth.
In the opening round, Thanga was relatively quiet, with pars on the front nine before breaking loose with a 40-feet eagle conversion along with three birdies on the back nine.
“I’m delighted with my ball-striking. I made 14 greens in regulation today and was equally good with my driver and irons on Day 1,” he said.
“I’m quite confident going into the weekend as I’ve always played well here at HGA. I have a number of top-10s at this venue and have even been involved in a play-off here.” Cheema’s amazing 63, featuring an eagle, seven birdies and two bogeys, made him jump 33 spots to be tied second.
Meanwhile, Danek produced a flawless 65 and climbed nine spots into joint second, while Stepan had a productive day with the putter, as he made three long birdie conversions, including a 30-footer.
Chhibber, the joint leader overnight, struck a 68 on Friday to slip a spot to tied second.
PGTI Ranking leader Veer Ahlawat came up with a 66 to be tied for fifth place at eight-under 132.
Also, Mohd Azhar (69) of Hyderabad was the only local golfer to make the cut, ending Day 2 in tied 39th at two-under 138. PTI AYG KHS AYG KHS
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.