Bhullar best-placed Indian in Singapore Open

Gaganjeet Bhullar added a two-under 69 to get into the Top-10 as the best Indian at the halfway stage of the SMBC Singapore Open. But overall the results were not too good for the Indians, as five of the eight starters were sure to miss the cut.

Bhullar, who shot 68 and was placed 11th, moved five places up in the second round.

Gaganjeet Bhullar was the best-placed Indian at tied-sixth in the SMBC Singapore Open with rounds of 68 and 69, while young Shubhankar Sharma and Shiv Kapur looked to be the only other Indians likely to make the cut at the USD 1 million dollar event jointly sanctioned by Asian and Japan Tours.

Bhullar added a two-under 69 to get into the Top-10 as the best Indian at the halfway stage of the tournament. But overall the results were not too good for the Indians, as five of the eight starters were sure to miss the cut.

Bhullar, who shot 68 and was placed 11th, moved five places up, but a number of players were yet to complete their second round. Unheralded Seungsu Han of the United States upstaged the tournament marquee names by carding a second round four-under 67 to grab the second round clubhouse lead.

Fading light and the loss of play on first day meant 26 players will return to continue their second round at 7.30 am on Saturday. Apart from Bhullar, the only other Indian reasonably sure of making the weekend rounds is Shubhankar Sharma, who after a first 69 was two-under through 15 holes in the second and was provisionally tied-17th at four-under.

Shiv Kapur, one-over through 17 holes, after a first round 71, was on the cutline, but had one more hole to play, which he will after returning tomorrow.

Missing the cut were Jyoti Randhawa (73-72), S Chikkarangappa (73-72), Rahil Gangjee (72-74), Chiragh Kumar (73-76) and Jeev Milkha Singh (75-75). Daniel Chopra (70-74) also missed the weekend.

Bhullar, who had three birdies against one bogey in his 69, said: “I hit the ball really well. I think I played better than I did yesterday. I gave myself a lot of opportunities and I didn’t make too many mistakes. Overall, it was a good and smooth round. I hit a lot of greens in regulation.

“The golf course demands good tee shots and good iron-play and a lot of good putts. I think patience is going to play a very important role this week. Apart from that, I am very much looking forward to playing in the weekend rounds.”