Pune:
Veteran golfer Smriti Mehra rode on her back nine to card the only under-par score of one-under 70 on the second day to grab the lead in the seventh leg of the Hero Women’s Professional Golf Tour, here today.
Kolkata’s Neha Tripathi is placed second with a total score of 147, four strokes behind Smriti Mehra. The Rs 5,00,000 event is being played at the Poona Club Golf Course and will culminate tomorrow.
Smriti had an indifferent start as she carded a double bogey on the 2nd hole. She carded two more bogies on the fourth and eighth holes along with a birdie on the seventh hole in her front nine.
Her back nine started on a similar note, with a bogey on the 10th hole. Thereafter, she turned things around, firing five birdies on the 11th, 12th, 15th, 17th and 18th holes. She finished with a total score of 143 after the second round.
Second placed Neha carded two birdies on the 7th and 9th holes. However, two double bogies on the 1st and 13th holes undid the good work and she had to be content with a score of 2 over 73 on the second day.
Overnight leader Saaniya Sharma, Bengaluru’s Sharmila Nicollet and Kapurthala golfer Gursimar Badwal are tied third with identical scores of 148 after 36 holes.
Hero Order of Merit leader Vani Kapoor and local girl Shweta Galande are tied sixth with identical scores of 149. They are followed by Kiran Matharu and Amandeep Drall, who are placed eighth and ninth respectively.
