Nirat, Wen Chong lead at avantha

Rahil Gangjee and Abhijit Chadha’s consistency ensured India’s presence in the top-10 but for the second successive day a Thai, Chapchai Nirat, figured among the leaders even as some prominent names missed the cut at the USD 2.3 million Avantha Masters golf tournament on Friday. Nirat and China’s Liang Wen Chong jointly held the top spot with totals of 12-under 132 after returning identical cards of six-under 66 for the second day running. Gangjee (66) and Chadha (69) were tied for the seventh spot with aggregates of nine-under 135, three stokes off the pace. They shared the position with overnight leader Chinnarat Phadungsil of Thailand whose fortunes took a tumble as he turned in a rather disappointing 74 after setting the course ablaze with a sensational 61 on Thursday. The cut was settled at a rather low three-under and some reputed names fell by the wayside. Among the big disappointments was the tournament’s big draw, Scottish legend Colin Montgomerie, who stumbled to a second successive four-over 76, Italian star Edoardo Molinari (70) and defending champion Jbe Kruger (72) of South Africa. Shiv Kapur (72) was among the prominent local favourites who would be missing from weekend action. Indian-origin Swede Daniel Chopra (71) and Shamim Khan (66) also missed the cut.