By IANS,
Chiang Rai, Thailand : Arjun Singh, who has effected some swing changes which helped him get into the winner’s circle on the PGTI Indian Tour, added a three-under 69 in the second round to move into tied fourth place at the midway stage of the Singha Thailand PGA Championship on Friday.
Arjun, who has not been on the leaderboard a very long time, dropped a late bogey on the par-three 17th, had five other birdies in his card. He was seven shots behind the leader, Juvic Pagunsan shot a nine-under 63 who moved to 13-under 131 for a two-shot lead over second place local hero Prayad Marksaeng.
Only five of the 12 Indians who started made the cut with Gaganjeet Bhullar (71) at five-under 139 being the second placed Indian at 11th. Other Indians making the cut were , Harmeet Kahlon (72) at tied 37th at one-under 143, Gaurav Ghei (71) at even par 144 and 47th, Amandeep Johl (70) at one over 145 was tied 53rd.
“Yesterday (first round) was a good round with five birdies and one bogey. Today, I only made one mistake on the par three 17. I was three under for the day but made double there but I made up with birdies in the next two holes. I was happy with how I came back,” said Arjun. “I’m feeling good, feeling comfortable with my swing. I still get on and off days but it’s getting better.”
Gurbaaz Mann (75), Himmat Rai (75) and Rahil Gangjee (72) missed the cut by one, as they were stranded at two-over. Ranjit Singh, who shot an 80 on first day went five-under 67 for second day but still missed cut by two as he ended three-over. Also missing the cut were Digvijay Singh (75), Anirban Lahiri (75), Firoz Ali (74) and Ranjit Singh of Kolkata (74).
Starting on the tenth, Arjun was three-under after seven holes, but then hit a double bogey on 17th. However, he birdied the 18th and first to recover from that mistake, but then did not find any more birdies.
“I had one tournament win in India in March and several top 10s, so it’s been good. It’s good to be playing fairly well again. I’ve not held a full exemption since 2005 but I don’t find it frustrating. It’s something that has happened and I’ve got to take it in my stride and get it back,” he said of the last few seasons.
“I made a swing change last year as I wasn’t happy with my swing before that. It’s just a matter confidence I guess. If I can get a good tournament going, it will help. I’m playing on a country exemption and I’m hoping to get back on track. I’m confident of regaining my best form,” he added.
Pagunsan fired a blistering nine-under-par 63 with 10 birdies, including a stunning run of seven in a row, at Santiburi Country Club to place a firm grip on the $300,000 Asian Tour event. His 13-under-par 131 total, which tied the lowest 36-hole score this season.
In-form Prayad maintained his hopes of a third victory this month with an equally impressive 65, highlighted by a chip-in eagle while Korea’s Mo Joong-kyung charged into contention with a bogey-free 64 for a 133 aggregate.
The halfway cut was set at 145 with 69 players progressing into the weekend rounds.