Chinese Taipei, 01-04-2016
Chikka shares halfway lead at Charming Yeangder ADT
Lahiri shoots 78, set to miss cut in Houston
India’s rising star Chikkarangappa S fired a sizzling seven-under-par 65 and stayed bogey-free to share the halfway clubhouse lead with James Byrne of Scotland at the weather-disrupted US$150,000 Charming Yeangder ADT on Friday.
Chikkarangappa, chasing for a third Asian Development Tour (ADT) victory and first outside of India, highlighted his round with seven birdies to seize the clubhouse lead by one shot on 11-under-par 133 alongside Byrne, who returned with a 68, at the National Golf Country Club.
Overnight leader Lin Wen-tang of Chinese Taipei slipped to third place following a battling 67 while American Greg Moss, Thai duo Pijit Petchkasem and Pavit Tangkamolprasert shared fourth on 135 following rounds of 70, 70 and 66 respectively.
The second round of the Charming Yeangder ADT, originally scheduled to start at 6.50am local time, was delayed for one and a half hours in the morning due to fog. Play was later abandoned for the day at 6.15pm due to the fading light.
A total of 13 players will resume their round at 7.00am on Saturday with round three not starting before 9.30am.
Chikkarangappa, who nailed three closing birdies to sign for the day’s lowest score of 65, rode on his hot putter to stay flawless after 36 holes.
“It was an amazing round. I started slow but I made some good up and downs out there. Everything was good for me,” said the 22-year-old Indian, who amassed 23 putts, with the longest one being a 20-footer birdie putt from right to left and downhill on the par-three eighth.
“I am very happy with how I played these two days, especially with a new driver and a new three-wood in the bag. I am able to find more fairways this week compared to my past experiences playing on this course. My putting was really solid,” added Chikkarangappa.
The halfway cut is projected to be at three-under-par 141 with the top 50 and ties advancing to the next two rounds.
Source: Asian Development Tour
Elsewhere, at the PGA Tour's Shell Houston Open, Anirban Lahiri followed up his opening round 69 with a six-over-78 in round two to slip from overnight tied 32nd to tied 116th. Even though, the second round could not be completed on Friday, Anirban with a two-round total of three-over-147, looked set to miss the cut which was projected at one-under-143.
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