Defending
champ Vinod Kumar takes the honours in round two
Jamshedpur, November 23, 2012: Delhi’s Vinod Kumar produced a four-under-67 at the Golmuri Golf
Course on Friday to take the honours in round two of the 11th TATA
Open. Vinod now has a tournament total of eight-under-135. Om Prakash Chouhan
of Mhow and Sri Lankan Mithun Perera are in joint second place at six-under-137.
On Thursday one half of the field had
played its 18 holes at the par 72 Beldih Golf Course while the golfers in the
other half had completed their rounds at the par 70 Golmuri Golf Course. On
Friday both halves of the field switched venues (those who played at Beldih on
day one, played 18 holes at Golmuri on day two and vice-versa).
The cut was
declared at two-over-145. Fifty-six professionals and one amateur made the cut.
Defending
champion Vinod Kumar (68-67), who also won on the PGTI last week, didn’t get
off to a great start in round two as he missed a one-foot birdie putt on the
second hole. Vinod’s tee shot on the par-4 fourth ended up in the greenside
bunker from where he made an up and down for birdie. He followed that up with a
15 feet birdie putt on the seventh.
The
32-year-old Vinod, currently placed 11th on the Rolex Rankings, was
a little unfortunate on the ninth as his chip for eagle from the edge of the
green lipped out. He salvaged a birdie on that hole. Kumar landed it within
four feet for birdies on the 10th and 13th as well. His
lone bogey of the day came on the 17th where he missed a chip-putt.
Vinod said, “The
win last week has really lifted my spirits and there is a lot more self-belief
in me now. I was in very good hitting form today. The only disappointment in
round two was missing some short putts. I’m equally comfortable at both the
courses here (Beldih & Golmuri) and have adapted well on both. I’m confident
of repeating last year’s performance.”
Om Prakash
Chouhan (69-68) of Mhow posted a three-under-68 at Golmuri in round two to take
his total to six-under-137. Chouhan made seven birdies against four bogeys. He
made four consecutive birdies from the 11th to the 14th.
Mithun Perera
(65-72) of Sri Lanka fired an even-par-72 at Beldih to join Chouhan in tied
second place. Mithun’s round was punctuated by four birdies and four bogeys.
The Delhi trio
of Shamim Khan, Rashid Khan and Anirudh Goyal were joined by Chandigarh’s
Abhijit Singh Chadha, Amardip Sinh Malik of Meerut, R Murthy of Bangalore and
Bangladesh’s Md Zamal Hossain Mollah in joint fourth place at four-under-139.
R Murthy’s
three-under-69 was the best score at Beldih on Friday.
Mukesh Kumar
of Mhow shot the day’s best score, a seven-under-64, at Golmuri. Mukesh’s
bogey-free round placed him tied 11th at three-under-140.
Round one
leader Anura Rohana of Sri Lanka returned a six-over-78 at Beldih in round two
to slip down to tied 11th place.
Karan Taunk of
Jamshedpur was the lone amateur to make the cut. His two-day total of
two-over-145 placed him tied 44th.
About Tata
Steel and Sports:
Established in 1907 as Asia's first integrated
private sector steel company, Tata Steel Group is among the top-ten global
steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of over 26.5 million tonnes
per annum (mtpa). It is now the world's second-most geographically-diversified
steel producer, with operations in 26 countries and a commercial presence in
over 50 countries. The Tata Steel Group, with a turnover of US$ 26.13 billion
in FY 12, has over 80,000 employees across five continents and is a Fortune 500
company. The Group’s vision is to be the world’s steel industry benchmark in
“Value Creation” and “Corporate Citizenship” through the excellence of its
people, its innovative approach and overall conduct. Underpinning this vision
is a performance culture committed to aspiration targets, safety and social
responsibility, continuous improvement, openness and transparency. In 2008,
Tata Steel India became the first integrated steel plant in the world, outside
Japan, to be awarded the Deming Application Prize 2008 for excellence in Total
Quality Management. In 2012, Tata Steel became the first integrated steel
company in the world to win the Deming Grand Prize 2012 instituted by the
Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers.
Tata Steel is the only Indian company to invest
in world-class sports facilities, create academies and maintain and manage
international level arenas. The cadets of its Tata Football Academy, the
nursery for the sport in India, as well as those of the Tata Archery Academy,
the only one of its kind for archery, have justified the faith that the Company
has in the talent and ability of its youth. Today, a significant part of the
Indian Football team, India’s best archers, some of its finest cricketers,
athletes, shooters, a Grand Master and several national and international
legends have realized their dreams as a result of the support they have
received from TATA Steel Sports Academies.
About PGTI:
Formed in 2006, Professional Golf Tour of
India (PGTI) is the recognized official body of professional golf in India.
PGTI’s objective is to promote professional golf in the country as well as give
players an opportunity to be involved in decision making for all aspects of the
game. Headed by Mr. Gautam Thapar (President), PGTI’s governing body comprises
of leading Indian golf professionals. PGTI currently has over 300 members.
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