Gurugram, Oct 25
Singapore's Shannon Tan and Alice Hewson of England led the US $400,000 16th Women's Indian Open after 36 holes at two-under par 142 at the DLF Golf and Country Club here on Friday. On a day when scoring was tough, Tan and Hewson were the only ones in the field with sub-par tournament aggregates.
Women's Professional Golf Tour (WPCT) Order of Merit leader Hitaashee Bakshi, who calls DLF her home course, bucked the prevalent trend of high numbers with the day's best card, a 4 under par 68 that lifted her into a share of 16th place. The 20-year-old was in fact one of just nine players to break par on the day which included the two joint leaders.
Ladies European Tour (LET) regular Pranavi Urs (74-71) was the best-placed Indian in the 114-strong field in a share of seventh place on 1-over 145 with Ridhima Dilawari (76-73) tied for 12th on 3-over 147. Urs, who has four top-10 finishes in her rookie LET season, including a tied third at the Dormy Helsingborg in May, was sanguine about her progress at her home Open. "Yesterday I started slow. I started with three bogeys, but DLF is such a course that you can go five under, and you can also go five over. So I think you just have to be patient, which I was yesterday, for a two-over.
"Today I started pretty good, and I think I was just consistent. And, I'm happy with the one-under. I think my putting has been good both days. I think my pace has been very good on the golf course, which really helps with greens like this. And, just happy with the play," she said.
On her plans for the third round, the 21-year-old from Mysore who is 27th on the Order of Merit added, "Tomorrow I'll not be aggressive, but try just sticking to the plan and trying to hit as many regulations as possible. And, hopefully, it goes well."
Bakshi had opened the event with an unexpected 8-over 80 on Thursday but bounced back strongly on the second day even as pre-event favourite and LET Order of Merit leader Chiara Tamburlini of Switzerland continued to struggle on the firm DLF greens to card a 9 over 81 on Friday after opening with a 74 on Thursday.
After her round, Hitaashee said, "After I finished my round one, I had a quick chat with my coach. We discussed a couple of things. And we were pretty set on what I had to do today. We didn't really do anything fancy. We just wanted to keep it simple - one shot at a time.
"I think that was the most important thing for me because I started off with a bogey, then the second was par but then the third again was a bogey and all I could think of was just do not give up till the time you hit the last putt on the 18th. So we just kept on playing one shot at a time," he said.
Tamburlini had travelled to Delhi with her season's third title in Taiwan but could only return a card on Friday that included a triple bogey, three double bogeys, and three bogeys against two birdies.
With the cut falling at an unprecedented 10-over 154, nine Indians went through to the weekend including two-time Ladies European Tour winner Diksha Dagar (78-72, tied 24th) besides amateurs Mannat Brar (76-75; T35) and Janneya Dasanniee ((76-77, T-49). DLF player Vani Kapoor (75-77) was T45 and another DLF player, Tvesa Malik, also made it to the money rounds right on the bubble at 10 over 154 (77-77). Tan (71-71), who made her LET debut with victory at the Magical Kenya Open at the very start of the season, later said she followed the template of the first round on Friday.
"I had the same gameplan today as yesterday, especially on this course," the Singaporean player said. "I focused on hitting fairways and greens and knowing which part of the green would be the safest option. I was disciplined and stuck to my plan. On the par-5 18th, I laid up even though I could have reached the green in two. You have to be disciplined around here.
"The fairways are quite tight and the greens quite firm and slopey. Lots of different sections on the green. I think that's why it's a bit tougher. I think being a rookie you know what your limit is in terms of how many events in a row you can play.
"That's the good thing about your first year. You figure out what works best for you in terms of travel schedule and everything else. I think that's one thing I learned this year and also knowing that it's all right to have a bad patch. One bad tournament isn't the end of the world. Even the best players have bad rounds. It's completely human so it's been one step back, two steps forward," she added.
Hewson, who carded a 2-under 70 to follow her opening 72, was pleased with her performance. "It's been solid so far. The course is really challenging this week. It's firm, the greens are fast. It's difficult to get close to a lot of the greens. So me and my caddie are just plotting our way around slowly but surely. So far it's paying off."
"I managed to hit quite a few iron shots close today. I've been driving it well pretty much the whole two days apart from one today [on the 8th] which cost me a double. Other than that I've kept it in play pretty consistently and been able to get some irons close."
"I like it here in India. I came here a couple of years ago. I didn't come here last year because it didn't quite fit my schedule. But I'm happy to be back. It's a much fiddlier golf course than what we usually play which I think probably plays to my strengths. I don't particularly hit it too far but I'm usually accurate. I'm just trying to play to my strengths," she said.