Kolar Open 2026: Shaurya Bhattacharya holds two-shot lead

Kolar (Karnataka), Aug 20 (IANS) Shaurya Bhattacharya shot a one-under 71 to retain a two-shot lead after the third round of the second edition of the INR 1 crore Kolar Open at the ZION Hills Golf County on the outskirts of Bengaluru on Thursday.

The 23-year-old Delhi golfer, who began the day three strokes clear, followed his opening rounds of 68 and 67 with a one-under 71 to reach 10-under 206. His advantage was reduced by one, but he remained in control heading into the final round.

Chandigarh’s Angad Cheema (73-68-67) and Hyderabad’s Mohd Azhar (70-68-70) shared second place at eight-under 208. Cheema made the strongest move among Bhattacharya’s nearest challengers, returning a five-under 67 to climb into contention. Azhar stayed in the hunt with a two-under 70.

The Czech Republic’s Stepan Danek (76-70-63) produced the lowest round of the day, firing a bogey-free nine-under 63 featuring nine birdies. His round included four consecutive birdies from the first through the fourth as he climbed from tied 14th overnight to fourth place at seven-under 209.

Bangladesh’s Badal Hossain (69-72-69) occupied fifth place at six-under 210, while Gurugram’s Veer Ahlawat (71-71-69), the 2024 DP World PGTI Rankings champion, was sixth at five-under 211.

Bhattacharya’s round was played in testing weather, with rain and strong winds making the back nine particularly demanding. The three-time DP World PGTI winner struck the ball well but missed two short putts during the closing stretch.

“The rain and strong winds made the conditions difficult, especially on the back nine,” said Bhattacharya. “I hit the ball well but missed two short putts coming home.”

A birdie on the final hole provided a timely lift and allowed him to restore a two-shot cushion ahead of Sunday’s final round. “Finishing with a birdie was important and gave me a positive end to the round,” he said.

Bhattacharya, currently 16th in the season rankings, does not plan to alter the approach that has kept him at the top of the leaderboard through the first three days. “The plan is to keep finding fairways and hitting greens,” he said. “That approach has worked well over the first three rounds, so I’ll stay with it tomorrow.”

Current PGTI Rankings leader Saptak Talwar (72-71-70), who spent the summer competing on the HotelPlanner Tour, improved from tied ninth to seventh place at three-under 213.

Defending champion Kshitij Naveed Kaul (73-75-66) of Delhi made one of the day’s biggest moves. His six-under 66 lifted him from tied 22nd to a share of eighth place at two-under 214.

Kaul was joined by Panipat’s Shubham Jaglan (70-73-71) and Jaipur’s Prakhar Asawa (71-71-72). Jaglan arrived in Bengaluru after securing his maiden professional title at last week’s Coal India Open in Kolkata.

–IANS

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