Pukhraj, 29, who hails from Ludhiana, is now 17-under for two rounds at the Par-72 Beldih Course, which can be quite tricky and challenging. Yet Pukhraj has had only one bogey against 16 birdies and one eagle, which came on the Par-5 16th. He stared from the first and had a hat-trick of birdies from the second and added two more on the sixth and the seventh to turn in 5-under.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
On the back nine, he birdied the 10th and the 12th and eagled the 16th while dropping his only shot in the two rounds so far on the Paf-4 14th.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Pukhraj, who had finished runner-up in IGPL Jaypee Greens, is seeking his first professional title and his seven-shot lead over the established Sachin Baisoya (67-67), is the biggest any player has had after two rounds. Meanwhile, Baisoya is also looking for his maiden win on the IGPL Tour.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Harendra Gupta of Chandigarh, a multiple winner on the Indian Tour, added a bogey free 4-under 68 to his first round 67 and is third at 9-under.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The surprise presence in the Top-5 is that of former Asian Tour winner, Chiragh Kumar, who is slowly finding his game as he comes back from injuries.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Chiragh, who lives a stone\u2019s throw from the Delhi Golf Club, opened with a bogey on the fourth hole in the shotgun start, and then went on to pick four birdies and an eagle on the Par-5 16th for a round of 67. He is now eight-under and sole fourth.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The IGPL Order of Merit leader, Aman Raj (69-70), who was looking at a unique hat-trick of wins after successes in Jaipur and Kolkata, was tied tenth alongside M Dharma (70-69), Kapil Kumar (72-67), Aryan Roopa Anand (71-68), Trishul Chinnappa (69-70) and young Kartik Singh (70-69) at 5-under total.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
An elated Pukhraj, who has had just one bogey in 36 holes, said, \u201cThis week has been an absolute flyer for me. Everything seems to be clicking, the hole feels bigger, and I\u2019ve just taken it all in my stride. I\u2019ve barely had a bogey, and that makes it easy to stay patient and focused because the game is flowing nicely.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI\u2019m very pleased with my performance today. I hardly missed a shot, and finishing with an eagle on the 16th really gave me an extra boost heading into tomorrow. My game plan has been solid, and I don\u2019t want to change much. The course suits my style \u2014 especially my shot shape \u2014 and I\u2019m very comfortable with how I\u2019m striking it right now.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cGolf is a funny game; you can easily have a few stray shots here and there. So having a cushion of two or three shots definitely helps.\u201d added Pukhraj Gill<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Speaking on the lovely Jamshedpur Golf Course, he added, \u201cThis course is definitely a little longer, with more well-defined tree lines, and both those aspects actually play to my advantage. The grass type is different too, and overall it feels more challenging than the Golmuri Golf Course. Golmuri has its own character, but I feel this one demands a bit more precision and control.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Talking of Sachin Baisoya, who is lying second, but played alongside him in the same group, Pukhraj said, \u201cBoth of us played very well today. Golf is an individual game, so you\u2019re in your own world most of the time \u2014 I was focused on my game, and he (Sachin) was probably focused on his. I think we both did really well.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Baisoya was also happy with his round, and commented, \u201cThe round went well. I did a good job hitting that part was really strong. My iron shots were quite close today, though I messed up slightly with the putting. On short putts of around six to seven feet, I missed about 5 or 6 of them, and that\u2019s where the scoring slipped a bit.\"<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Sachin Baisoya added, \u201cI\u2019m happy as it was a bogey-free round. As for tomorrow, my approach remains the same, stick to fairways and greens. If I stay consistent, I\u2019ll keep making pars, and if a birdie opportunity comes along, that\u2019s a bonus. That\u2019s pretty much the plan.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Harendra Gupta was also happy the way his game has been trending. He said, \u201cOver the last five to six years, my game has really improved, and I\u2019ve been hitting the ball well. My driving has become much better, and I\u2019m very happy that my game has come back. I\u2019ve also been scoring really well lately.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
He added, \u201cFor the last five years, I wasn\u2019t scoring as consistently, but over the past couple of years, I\u2019ve been playing very well. It feels great to see my game back. There isn\u2019t one particular shot that stands out \u2014 it\u2019s more about playing my overall game. Questions or challenges always come and go, but what matters is staying focused and playing your own game.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Harendra Gupta was also happy the way his game has been trending. He said, \u201cOver the last five to six years, my game has really improved, and I\u2019ve been hitting the ball well. My driving has become much better, and I\u2019m very happy that my game has come back. I\u2019ve also been scoring really well lately.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Young Kartik Singh, who is second on the IGPL Order of Merit leader, was tied tenth with OOM leader, Aman Raj (69-70), veteran M Dharma (70-69), IGPL Pune winner, Kapil Kumar (72-67), former two-time All India Amateur winner, Aryan Roopa Anand (71-68) and Trishul Chinnappa (69-70).<\/p>\r\n\r\n