Manu Gandas takes the halfway lead at Glade One Masters

Manu Gandas takes the halfway lead at Glade One Masters

Key Highlights:

→ Manu Gandas fired 6-under 30 in the second round to take the halfway lead

→ Yuvraj Singh Sandhu shoots 32 to be a close second; Hole-in-one for C Muniyappa

→ The cut was applied at two-over-74. Fifty-six professionals made the cut

Manu Gandas of Delhi produced a bogey-free six-under 30 to take the halfway lead at the Glade One Masters here on Wednesday.

Gandas, who is seeking his maiden win on the PGTI, claimed the mid-tournament lead at seven-under-65. Yuvraj Singh Sandhu (34-32) of Chandigarh was a close second at six-under-66 after he fired an impressive four-under-32.

Both young lads, searching for their maiden wins on the PGTI, have been knocking on the doors of victory for some time now.

Manu Gandas and Yuvraj Singh Sandhu

Gandas, who began the day two behind the lead, said, “I’ve had two top-10s since the resumption of the tour in November last year so the game is in good shape. My much-improved ball-striking can be credited for this consistent run.

“When one plays just nine holes in a round, one tends to be more conservative as there is no room for comebacks or much margin for error. I also began the day with that mindset. But I kept creating chances and the putts kept rolling in for me today. I converted all my opportunities on the greens. I didn’t make any errors like I did in round one.

Yuvraj said, “At the start of the day I thought my putter was cold. I was also not feeling my best and had a sore back due to playing in totally different conditions over the past two weeks. But then my putter just seemed to wake up after my eagle on the fifth.

“I’ve had a good run since the resumption of the tour in November having posted three top-10s. My improved fitness and my post round drills have given me the reassurance of staying in rhythm. I feel I’m close to winning since I have the game. I just need to calm down a little.”

The four players bunched together in tied third place with totals of four-under-68 were Bengalureans Khalin Joshi (34) and Trishul Chinnappa (34), Faridabad-based Abhinav Lohan (34), and Om Prakash Chouhan (33) of Mhow.

C Muniyappa of Bengaluru had a hole-in-one on the seventh during his round of 33 that placed him tied eighth at two-under-70.

Round one joint leaders M Dharma (38) of Bengaluru and Anshul Patel (41) of Ahmedabad slipped to tied 14th at one-under-71 and tied 43rd at two-over-74 respectively.