Teen golfer Aadil Bedi hogged the limelight with a classy seven-under 65 to take the second place but it was Sri Lankan Anura Rohana, who powered ahead by three shots after round two at the Bengaluru Open Golf Championship here Friday.
17-year-old rookie Bedi, playing only his fourth professional event, climbed 13 places from his overnight tied 15th after taking his two-day total to 10-under-134.
The 45-year-old Rohana's bogey-free eight-under-64 in windy conditions in the latter half of the day took his 36-hole total to an imposing 13-under-131 at the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) course.
The halfway cut fell at one-over-145 at the Rs. 60 lakh event. Sixty-two professionals and one amateur made the cut.
Rohana (67-64), who began the day in fourth place, one off the lead, sizzled from the very start as he sank birdies on his first two holes, the 10th and 11th.
Although he missed a number of short putts on the back-nine, Rohana did manage to pick up two more strokes on the 14th and 18th.
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Rohana, a winner of five titles including one at the KGA, stepped on the gas on the front-nine picking up four more birdies. He signed off with a 20-feet birdie conversion on the ninth.
Bedi (69-65), who turned pro soon after representing India at the Jakarta Asian Games in August this year, mixed eight birdies with a lone bogey at the KGA on Friday.
Bedi missed an eagle by a whisker on the 11th when his chip stopped an inch from the hole. Thereafter, he went on to make birdie conversions from 30 and 15 feet on the 13th and 17th respectively.
Round one joint leader Mukesh Kumar of Mhow slipped to tied third at nine-under-135 after returning a 69 on day two. Delhi's Rashid Khan and Patna's Aman Raj carded scores of 67 to also take a share of third place.
Chandigarh's Harendra Gupta, another joint leader from round one, dropped to tied sixth at eight-under-136 after a round of 70. Om Prakash Chouhan (68) of Mhow was also in tied sixth.
Defending champion Udayan Mane of Ahmedabad came up with a 68 to occupy tied eighth at seven-under-137. C Muniyappa (69) joined Mane in tied eighth to be the highest-placed Bengaluru golfer.
Honey Baisoya, also part of the three-way lead in the first round, posted a 74 in round two to slip to tied 14th at four-under-140.
Noida's Raju Singh struck a hole-in-one on the 13th during his round of 73. He was placed tied 39th at even-par-144.
Local lad Aryan Roopa Anand was the only amateur to make the cut. Aryan shot scores of 71 and 74 to be tied 48th at one-over-145.
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