The Hindu : Sport / Golf : Gaurav Ghei leads as Jeev, Kapur disappoint

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Friday, Apr 01, 2005

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Sport - Golf

Gaurav Ghei leads as Jeev, Kapur disappoint

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 31. Gaurav Ghei reminded some of the more illustrious contenders for the Rs. 50 lakh PSPB Open golf title that when it comes to major event at the Delhi Golf Club course, he should not be counted out.

On Thursday, Ghei produced a round of six-under 66 in windy conditions to climb atop the leader-board. His `seven-birdie-one-bogey' card came in the midst of disappointing scores from some of the pre-event favourites.

Ghei led Amandeep Johl and Feroz Ali by a stroke on a day when 21 golfers, including four amateurs broke par.

Jeev Milkha Singh failed to get his act together. He eventually managed a card of 76, including a triple-bogey-seven on the 16th hole and occupied a distant 71st place.

Shiv Kapur, the rookie of the season, was almost out of sight with a believe-it-or-not card of 10-over 82! Returning to competitive golf on his home course after seven years, Kapur dropped 13 strokes against three birdies to find himself on the brink of elimination.

A 20-foot birdie

But the man of the moment was indeed Ghei. An eternal `favourite' on his home course following a fairytale triumph in the 1995 Gadgil Western Masters, concentrated on keeping the ball in the fairway and thereafter, did not try to attack the `pin'.

His short game worked well on this day with the longest birdie coming from about 20 feet on the par-three second hole.

After starting from the 10th hole, Ghei's lone bogey came on the par-3 seventh, where his seven-iron tee shot landed in the bunker, up against the slope, to the left of the flag. He chipped on to the green but missed a 12-foot putt.

"On this course, no one can come to the first tee and hope to shoot a under-par round, no matter how many times he has played here," said Ghei who agreed to knowing this course better than any other in the world.

"This course can be very punishing if you try too hard to attack the pin. One has to concentrate on staying in the fairway."

Ghei also said should the windy conditions prevail, any double-digit under-par score should be enough to win the title.

While Johl and Feroz produced an identical 34 and 33 in each half during the day, Ashok Kumar slipped in a card of 69 to be in the company of Digvijay Singh and S. S. P. Chaurasia, among others. Tour leader Mukesh Kumar shot a 71, same as Vijay Kumar.

Among the amateurs, Simarjeet Singh led with a 69.

The scores: Gaurav Ghei 66; Amandeep Johl, Feroz Ali 67; Gagandeep Bhullar (A) 68; Ashok Kumar, Digvijay Singh, Praduman Singh, S. S. P. Chaurasia, Simarjeet Singh (A) 69; Arjun Singh, Suleman Ali 70; B. G. Lalithakumara (Sri), Brijpal Singh, Chirag Kumar (A), Gast Ram, Jumman, Mukesh Kumar, Rafick Ali, Ranjit Singh, Vijay Kumar and Vikrant Chopra (A) 71.

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