Chapchai Nirat is a humble golfer who greets you with folded hands but when it comes to the game, he can be as merciless as anyone on the pro circuit.
Chapchai Nirat is a humble golfer who greets you with folded hands but when it comes to the game, he can be as merciless as anyone on the pro circuit. The pious 26-year-old, who’s believed to have spent a lot of time in a monastery in 2007 to gain powers of concentration, might just need all of it to keep ahead of the pack in the remaining two days.
Scorching the Classic Golf Resort course here with another 10-under par score that set an Asian Tour record of 20-under 124 for the first two rounds, Nirat finished a good four strokes ahead of second-placed Mark Purser of New Zealand in the $300,000 SAIL Open here on Thursday.
Jyoti Randhawa once again failed to raise his game but youngsters Anirban Lahiri and Gaganjeet Bhullar kept up the Indian challenge with superb second-round cards but like others, their hopes will depend on how Nirat continues to play.
“My form has been superb but my waist and wrists are not doing too well,” Nirat said after making one-putts on the first six holes for a total of 23.
“The course suits my game as I have been able to reach all par-fives in two strokes,” added the Thai player, known for powerful driving that has helped him immensely on the long but unchallenging course here. Nirat attacked the greens consistently for 11 birdies, but bogeyed on the par-four 13th, where he drove too much towards the right.
Nirat’s course record of 10-under was equalled by Lahiri for a two-round aggregate of 134 as the 21-year-old from Bangalore birdied eight of the first 10 holes.
“I knew I had to shoot at least four or five under today to make it to the weekend. I hit it close and made a 25-foot putt for birdie on the second and was unfortunate to miss an eagle as my chip lipped out,” said Lahiri, whose par score in the opening round meant he was tied with Shiv Kapur at 10 under 134 in joint 10th position along with two others.
Lahiri’s teammate at the Doha Asian Games, Bhullar, followed up his first-round score of 67 with a 64 to keep ahead of him by three strokes at fourth place.
“All my putts were within 10 feet today. I also did well with the lob wedge and sand wedge in round two, having made some good chips,” said Bhullar, 20, who hails from Kapurthala in Punjab.
Randhawa barely made the cut and was in joint 53rd position along with 14 others, following his first round score of 71 with a 69.
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