India’s Rahil Gangjee fired a flawless three-under-par 69 to take a share of the third round lead with six other players on matching 11-under-par 205 at the Avantha Masters on Saturday. The crowded leaderboard also saw Australia’s Darren Beck, Japan’s Tetsuji Hiratsuka and Taiwan’s Chan Yih-shin heading into the final round of the US$2.1 million tournament which is co-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tours.
Gangjee maintained his good run at the DLF Golf and Country Club and continued to excite the home crowd after the country’s marquee names such as Jeev Milkha Singh, Gaganjeet Bhullar and SSP Chowrasia had failed to make it into the weekend rounds.
Gangjee won his maiden Asian Tour title during his rookie year in 2004 and he believes that he can end his six year title drought despite the pressures of being the leading Indian this week.
PHOTO: AFP
“The pressure will always be there but I’ve been in this position before and I’ve handled it well,” said the 31-year-old.
Starting his round in tied-10th, Gangjee birdied the third and seventh holes to reach the turn in 34. He pared the next eight holes after the turn before closing with another birdie on the par-five 18th.
“I’m pretty happy because I had no bogeys again today. I’m excited that I’m in the lead, but I’m just going to do what I’ve been doing the last three days by playing one shot at a time and enjoying it,” Gangjee said.
Hiratsuka who shot a course record of 62 at the weather-disrupted second round underlined his title ambitions when he returned with a 70 to remain in contention for his career breakthrough on the Asian Tour. The Japanese enjoyed a flawless opening front-nine where he recorded birdies on the fourth and ninth holes to reach the turn in 34. He then mixed two bogeys against two birdies in his homerun to sign for a 70.
Taiwan’s Lin Wen-hong was in a group of players two shots off the lead, including Marcel Siem of Germany and Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke.
■PEBBLE BEACH PRO-AM
AP, PEBBLE BEACH, CALIFORNIA
Dustin Johnson and Paul Goydos could not be any more different, which is why it was odd to see them atop the leaderboard Saturday at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am with identical scores.
On their birth certificates, Goydos is 20 years older. On the tee, Johnson is 48 yards longer.
Johnson is tall and athletic. Goydos is ... not.
Johnson overpowered Spyglass Hill for an 8-under 64 that included two eagles. Goydos poked his way along the splendid coastline of Pebble Beach and birdied two of the last three holes for an 8-under 64.
Nothing separated them on the scoreboard, which is all that matters. They were at 18-under 196, four shots clear of anyone else heading into the final round of the three-course event.
“His game is a little different from mine,” said Johnson, who will try to become only the fifth back-to-back winner of the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, and the first in 20 years. “And he finds a way to get it done.”
Johnson began his round at Spyglass Hill with a 343-yard drive, leading to a 20-foot eagle from the fringe.
Goydos ripped a 268-yard drive on the par-5 second hole at Pebble Beach, leaving him a 3-wood into the 513-yard hole that he hit to 8 feet for an eagle.
Goydos was asked if he will simply ignore how far Johnson hits the ball off the tee.
“No, I fully panic,” Goydos said. “You know, it is what it is.”
“I don’t know if ‘ignore’ is the right word, but you appreciate. I’m going to appreciate his play, but you go out and play your game, too. I have do things differently than he does, and he’s got to do things differently than I do,” he said.
Johnson was asked which course plays long for him. His answer came through a fixed smile.
“Not too many of them,” he said.
Even so, Johnson, emerging as one of the top young American stars, is not about to take Goydos lightly.
“It doesn’t matter how far you hit it or where you hit it,” Johnson said. “You’ve just got to find a way to get it in the hole.”
“Whoever can get it in the hole tomorrow is going to come out with the victory,” he said.
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