Brijesh Kumar and Jhared Hack emerged as joint leaders at the Indorama Ventures Open Golf Championship in Ahmedabad, showcasing impressive golfing skills and setting the stage for a thrilling competition.
Brijesh Kumar and Jhared Hack returned cards of three-under 69 and two-under 70 respectively to emerge joint leaders on day two of the Indorama Ventures Open Golf Championship here on Friday.
Brijesh Kumar (68-69) and Jhared Hack (67-70) were tied for the lead at a total of seven-under 137. While Indian golfer Brijesh mixed five birdies with two bogeys to rise two spots from his overnight tied third place, American golfer Hack made four birdies and two bogeys to climb one spot from his overnight second position.
Dhruv Sheoran shot a second straight 69 to end the halfway stage in third place at six-under 138.
The quartet consisting of India's Saptak Talwar, Frenchmen Clement Sordet and Pierre Pineau and Austria's Christoph Bleier were tied fourth at five-under 139.
Round one leader Rashid Khan slipped to tied eighth at four-under 140 after he carded a 74 in round two.
The cut fell at four-over 148. Sixty-two professionals made the cut.
The highlight of Brijesh's round was his 20-feet birdie conversion on the 18th.
"I hit my tee shots with great precision today and thus made most fairways. I was also sharp with my game around the greens. Winning on the NexGen last season gave me a lot of confidence and now the goal is to win on the DP World PGTI. It will be important for me to continue in the same rhythm and look to finish well," Brijesh said.
Hack, the winner of the season's first event, made a couple of conversions from a range of 15 to 30 feet and scored birdies on two out of the four Par-5s.
He said, "I putted well in round one and drove well today. The hot weather here in Ahmedabad is a lot like Las Vegas and Florida where I have played a lot of golf so I'm accustomed to these conditions. It's a great golf course, one of the best I've played in India so far. I'm pleased about putting myself in a good position and look forward to contending this week."