Birthday boy Amritinder leads Singhania Open
Amritinder Singh gave himself the best possible birthday gift with an error-free round of five-under 67, giving him the opening day's lead at the Rs 600,000 Sir Padampat Singhania Open 2002, being played at the
par-72, Noida Golf course.
The tournament marks the 20th leg of the 2001-02 season's Hero Honda Golf Tour.
Lucknow's Sanjay Kumar was menacingly poised one stroke behind the leader at
four-under 68.
Kolkata's Feroz Ali, locked in a fierce battle for supremacy
with Mhow's Mukesh Kumar, returned a three-under 69 to tie at third spot
with defending champion and fellow Kolkatan SSP Chowrasia.
Delhi's Ashok Kumar, playing his first Hero Honda Golf Tour event, after an impressive
professional debut at last week's Hero Honda Masters, played to two-under 70
to tie for the fifth position with local golfer Amit Dube.
Amritinder Singh made the perfect entry into his fourth decade on earth.
The Chandigarh based pro couldn't err today even if he wished to.
"Everything clicked for me in some strange manner," he said. At last week's
Hero Honda Masters, Amritinder put himself under unnecessary pressure, which
automatically stiffened his swing.
"Today, I came in with just one aim. To swing it freely and enjoy my game," he said. This policy worked wonders and
was good enough to place him atop the leader-board.
Amritinder began his round with a sea of pars and ended his outward journey
with a birdie on the 9th.
"I got lucky on the 9th where my tee shot rammed
straight into a tree only to roll back onto the fairway. From there I hit
it to 15 feet and sank the putt," said the thrice Hero Golf Chandigarh Open
winner.
Thereafter, the Asian PGA Tour regular caught fire to birdie the
12th and 14th with the highlight of his round coming in the form of an eagle
on the 17th.
Amritinder's accuracy today can best be described by his
3-wood second shot on the par-5 17th. The ball covered 270 yards before
coming to rest just 6-feet from the pin. Needless to say, he drained the
putt.
Sanjay Kumar has had a number of consistent starts this season but has
failed to add to his two wins on the Hero Honda Golf Tour. Today, Sanjay
returned as many as six birdies these coming on the 1st, 2nd, 6th, 9th, 10th
and 11th. Dropped shots on the 8th and 16th however, cost him the lead.
"I am not too disappointed at missing out on the lead. I will be happier
leading the field on the final day," said a confident Sanjay.
Bahuguna leads amateur field; Jadeja impresses: Local hero Saurav Bahuguna
returned a level-par 72 to assume a three-stroke lead among the amateurs.
Former Test cricketer Ajay Jadeja impressed with a three-over 75. Jadeja
was tied second with Anitya Chand, Simarjeet Singh and Vikramjit Singh.
SCORES (after 18 holes): 67_Amritinder Singh; 68_Sanjay Kumar, 69_Feroz Ali,
Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia; 70_Ashok Kumar, Amit Dube; 71_Asgar Ali,
Jumman, Shamim Khan; 72_Mohd. Islam, Mukesh Kumar, Rafiq Ali; 73_Akbar Ali,
GS Sethi, Sheeraz Kalra, Suleiman Ali, Yusuf Ali.
Amateurs: 72_Saurav
Bahuguna; 75_Ajay Jadeja, Anitya Chand, Simarjeet Singh, Vikramjit Singh