Noida, 14-10-2014

Abhinav Lohan sets the pace on day one with a 67

Abhinav Lohan of the DLF Golf & Country Club posted a five-under-67 to set the pace in round one of the PGTI Players Championship at Noida Golf Course. Teenager Honey Baisoya of Delhi and Kolkata’s Mohammad Sanju were tied second with scores of four-under-68.

Abhinav Lohan, recovering from an injury in his right elbow, was two-under through his first-nine as he sank two long birdie putts on the 11th and 16th and capitalized on the par-5 14th with another birdie. His lone bogey before the turn came on the 15th. 

Abhinav, who has six top-10s to his credit out of eight starts this year, landed it within five feet for eagle on the first. The 2010 Asian Games silver medalist accumulated three more birdies on his second-nine against two bogeys. He closed the day with a 20-feet birdie putt on the ninth.

Lohan, who played in the second half of the day when the sun was out, said, “I sank a couple of 20-footers today but also missed chip-putts from the front edge on two occasions. The eagle on the first was the highlight of my round. I’m delighted to have shot a 67 as I’m still recovering from the elbow injury I suffered couple of months back while practicing. As a result of the injury I can only hit about 50 balls in a day and can’t follow my regular practice schedule. Therefore, this score is all the more creditable.”

Honey Baisoya, playing his second season on the tour, was even-par after four holes but picked up pace with three long birdie putts on the fifth, seventh and 10th. The 18-year-old made an incredible recovery after an erratic tee shot on the seventh. Baisoya’s second shot bisected two trees and landed 50 feet from the cup. Honey converted the mammoth 50-footer.

A lip-out led to a bogey on the 11th for Baisoya, but the runner-up on the 2013 Feeder Tour rallied with birdies on the next three holes thanks to excellent wedge shots. Honey, whose cousins Kapil Kumar and Ajay Baisoya also play on the PGTI, ended the day with a disappointing bogey on the 16th where he suffered his second lip-out of the day.

Baisoya said, “The conditions were not easy as it rained for a major part of my round. Nonetheless, I managed a good round courtesy my short-game. If my putting did the trick on the front-nine, it was my wedge shots that earned me birdies on the back-nine. I made some amazing recoveries today especially on the seventh. It’s not been a great season for me so far as my hitting has not been up to the mark. I would like to capitalize on this start here and make an impact on the Rolex Rankings.”

Mohammad Sanju bogeyed the 11th and 13th to be two-over after his first seven holes. Sanju, however, fought back with some stunning iron-play to come up with a golden run of birdie-birdie-eagle on the 17th, 18th and first. The 32-year-old was in the rough on the 18th and first but produced some innovative iron shots to land it within three feet on both occasions. Sanju, whose father Md Salim also played on the PGTI till five years back, accumulated two more birdies on the fourth and eighth after landing it within a couple of feet of the flag.

“I hit 15 regulations today and excelled on the par-5s. I was four-under on the four par-5s with an eagle and two birdies. My irons got me out of trouble on a couple of occasions. I also recovered well to make a good bogey on the 13th. It was tough negotiating the swirling winds and the rain, especially on the first seven holes. I was delighted to make a strong comeback after the early bogeys. I’m just outside the top-60 in the Rolex Rankings at the moment and this tournament is crucial for me to make my way up in the rankings,” said Sanju.

Amateur Jaiveer Atwal of Delhi, playing his first professional tournament, produced a beautiful second shot from a range of 260 yards that stopped two feet from the cup on the 17th and led to an eagle. The 20-year-old also had three birdies and two bogeys in his opening round of three-under-69 to be placed tied fourth.

Kolkata’s Raju Ali Mollah joined Atwal in tied fourth after a round that comprised an eagle on the first, five birdies, two bogeys and a double-bogey. Bangalorean Khalin Joshi also shot a 69 to take a share of fourth place.