Shamim Khan’s patience pays off

A brave display on the back-nine helped joint overnight leader Shamim Khan to walk off with a 3-stroke lead going into the final day of the Aircel PGTI Players Championship at the Bombay Presidency Golf Club on Thursday.

In an eventful third round that had its share of drama, Khan got himself out of the trouble when he started the day with two bogeys on the second and third holes.

But the 32-year-old Delhi pro recovered well to fire four birdies between the 12th and the 18th holes to open up a three-stroke lead with a total of seven-under 203.

Bangladesh’s Mohammad Siddikur Rahman, who shared the lead with Khan at the end of Round 2, finished the day at one-under 69 to take his tally to four-under 206.

While most of the players found it difficult to cope with the strong wind blowing across the course, Khan remained patient when things weren’t going his way. “I just had to keep on going after the poor start. Luckily, I was putting the ball well and gathered momentum towards the end which helped a lot,” said Khan.

“The grass is new and hasn’t matured yet so it’s pretty slow. The roughs are difficult too. Hence it becomes imperative to get the ball on the green from the tee-shot. Else it is a struggle,” Khan said, referring to the changes made during the renovation of the BPGC course.

Another remarkable recovery of the day was made by rising star Gaganjeet Bhullar, who even after triple-bogeying twice — on the sixth and seventh holes — somehow managed to remain in contention by finishing four strokes behind.