Karnal, Haryana, 24-06-2014
Dinesh Raghuvanshi, Akshay Sharma, Arshdeep Tiwana share round one lead at five-under-63
Dinesh Raghuvanshi of Pune, Akshay Sharma of Chandigarh and Gurgaon-based Arshdeep Tiwana shot scores of five-under-63 to emerge as joint round one leaders at the PGTI Feeder Tour event at the par-68 Madhuban Meadows Golf Course in Karnal. Samaresh Sardar of Kolkata, Patna’s Md Nawab and Ravi from Chandimandir, Haryana, are all in tied fourth place at four-under-64.
Dinesh Raghuvanshi had an astounding nine birdies against four bogeys in his opening round. His round included a magical run of four consecutive birdies from the 10th to the 13th. Raghuvanshi, the elder brother of the seasoned Mukesh Kumar, landed it within two feet of the pin on the fourth, seventh, 10th, 12th and 17th on Tuesday.
“I was even-par at the turn but then got into my stride with six birdies against a lone bogey on the back-nine. I struck it well today and landed it close on several occasions. I needed a good start this week since I’ve not played well so far this year. I’ll look to build on this solid start from here on,” said Dinesh.
Akshay Sharma, who won the Feeder Tour season opener in Jaipur last week, continued his rich vein of form at the Madhuban Meadows Golf Course, with six birdies and a bogey in round one. He missed an eagle from 12 feet on the 11th after his putt lipped out. Akshay drove the green on the par-4 15th hole to set up a birdie opportunity.
“The win last week has just lifted my game. I feel I can now shoot good scores more consistently. I made some decent putts today. I have the momentum at this stage and I’ll look to capitalize on it over the next two days,” said Akshay, the Feeder Tour Order of Merit leader.
Arshdeep Tiwana, a 10th tee starter, was off to a flying start with a chip-in for eagle on the 11th. He was then struck on the head by his playing partner Balprrit Guman’s ball on the 12th. Guman was hitting it out of the rough on the 12th when his ball struck Tiwana and resulted in a cut on his head. Arshdeep, nonetheless, soldiered on with chip-putt birdies on the 15th, 16th and sixth and another one on the seventh. A bogey on the 17th was the only blemish on his card.
Tiwana, a former winner on the Feeder Tour, said, “The injury was a minor one so it didn’t really distract me. I chipped well today and took advantage of the relatively shorter par-4s and par-5s to score. It’s important for me to do well here so that I find some form for the season ahead.”
Samaresh Sardar of Kolkata, Patna’s Md Nawab and Ravi from Chandimandir, Haryana, are one stroke off the lead in tied fourth.
Local lad Maniram Sharma is in tied 12th place after a round of one-under-67.
Aditya Singh Chauhan of Indore had two eagles in his round of 67 that placed him in joint 12th along with Maniram. Chauhan also made three bogeys during his opening round.
The top 36 players and ties will make the cut at the end of round two on Wednesday.
About PGTI:
Formed in 2006, Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) is the recognised official body of professional golf in India. PGTI's objective is to promote professional golf in the country, as well as to give players an opportunity to be involved in the decision making on all aspects of the game. Headed by Mr. Kapil Dev (President), PGTI's governing body comprises leading Indian golf professionals. PGTI currently has over 300 members.
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