Golfer Saaniya shoots 1-under to grab lead

Chandigarh's Saaniya Sharma played the only under-par round of 1 under 71 to soar into pole position after the second round of the 13th leg of the Hero Women's Professional Golf Tour at the Coimbatore Golf Club here on Thursday.

Delhi's Vani Kapoor retained her second place with an effort of 2 over 74 and trails Saaniya by just one stroke while overnight leader Amandeep Drall ended tied third with Neha Tripathi with identical scores of 153 at the Rs.5 lakh event.

Saaniya used all her experience in difficult conditions to take control. The Chandigarh pro carded her first birdie on the second hole while dropping her only shot on the seventh in her front nine. She played a bogey-free back nine and a birdie on the 18th was enough to secure her a one stroke lead over Vani. She finished with a total score of 148.

Order of Merit leader Vani had an indifferent start and carded two consecutive bogeys on the second and third and added another on the seventh. Her lone birdie in her front nine came on the fifth. However, she played with much more control in her back nine and carded just one bogey on the 16th followed by a birdie on the 17th to set the final day for a nail biting finish. She finished with 149 after 36 holes.

Panchkula's Amandeep could not sustain her first round momentum and carded 7 over 79. Her error prone round included nine bogeys on the second, third, fourth, seventh, ninth, 10th, 11th, 14th and 17th. However, two late birdies on the 16th and 18th helped her control the damage and to stay in contention for her second title.

Kolkata's Neha carded four birdies on the fifth, sixth, ninth and 15th, maximum by any golfer on the day. However, three bogeys on the fourth, seventh and 17th along with a double on the 10th meant that she had to be content with a score of 1 over 73.

Pune's Shweta Galande is fifth with 154. She carded five bogeys on the third, fourth, seventh, 15th and 18th along with a double on the eighth. She also carded two birdies on the first and 14th to return with a score of 5 over 77 in the second round.

She is followed by Delhi's Ankita Tiwana in sixth place with a score of 160. Jaipur's Afshan Fatima is seventh with 162, followed by Delhi's Mehar Atwal and Ayesha Kapur in tied eight with 166.