There was a bit of banter on the last hole at the CIAL Golf Club on Friday as news came in that Kolkata’s Rahil Gangjee had taken the lead in the PGTI Cochin Masters. “His wife is from Kerala; she must have told him something inspiring,” said Gaganjeet Bhullar, in jest, as he got ready to tee off for the 18th hole.
Gangjee, who was tied sixth overnight, indeed came up with an inspired show today. He started in a hurry, with three birdies in a row, and then gained much from the four par-five holes. That brought him a brilliant seven-under 65 and pushed him to the joint lead with Mukesh Kumar.
“Today, the key was taking advantage of the par fives; I had five under for the four par fives that I played (including an eagle on the 16th), and that really helped me,” said the 36-year-old, a former winner on the Asian Tour.
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Gangjee appeared to be in some trouble when the ball landed near a small bush on the 16th, but he was in such great form that he produced a brilliant cut shot that set up a 10 feet eagle putt.
“That was probably my best shot of the day. I have missed three cuts in a row, but I am looking forward to a top finish this week,” said Gangjee, who joined Mukesh at the top of the pack after round three with an eight-under 208. Mukesh shot a score of 66.
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Sri Lankan Anura Rohana returned the tournament’s best score of eight-under-64 — it was also the best score of the week — to be tied third with Kapurthala’s Gaganjeet Bhullar at seven-under-209.
Mukesh, who had two birdies on the front nine, pushed ahead with four on the back nine, which saw him rise impressively. “My hitting and putting were the best today compared to the last two rounds. I could have gone lower, but I missed five birdie putts from close range,” said the seasoned 49-year-old.
Meanwhile, defending champion Shubhankar Sharma, who led by three shots after round two, slipped to fifth position at six-under-210 after a third round of 73.
Important scores (round three, par-72 course): 208: Rahil Gangjee (Kolkata, 72,71,65) & Mukesh Kumar (Mhow, 71, 71, 66); 209: Anura Rohana (Sri Lanka, 75, 70, 64) & Gaganjeet Bhullar (Kapurthala, 69, 71, 69); 210: Shubhankar Sharma (Delhi, 69, 68, 73); 212: Sujjan Singh (Chandigarh, 73, 70, 69).