– The second round of the DP World India Championship has concluded without anyone being able to take the lead from Tommy Fleetwood (-12), which the Englishman had firmly grasped in the morning session with a score of 64. Close behind are Shane Lowry (-11), Brian Harman (-11), and Keita Nakajima (-10).
– When Nakajima won in India a year and a half ago, he did not hide his fervent desire to secure one of the ten PGA Tour cards distributed by the European circuit. So, who knows, perhaps it will be in India again where the Japanese player can get closer to his dream, as he arrived at the tournament this week ranked 21st in the Race to Dubai, not too far from his goal.
– Jorge Campillo (-7) has also positioned himself moderately well for the weekend. And the fact is that his round today was no walk in the park, despite finishing with a good score of 70, two under for the day. After hitting well off the tee on Thursday, a poor start today on the 4th hole, where he carded a double bogey, shook his confidence a bit. “Since I missed that tee shot on the 4th, I’ve been a bit unsure and played poorly, but my short game and putting saved me,” he told Tengolf after signing his card and heading to hit some balls on the practice range to try and regain his good form. A good example of that brilliant short game was the eagle by the Spaniard on the 8th hole, where he holed out from off the green, about 25 metres from the hole.
– Now it’s time to choose how to think: “if I play like this from tee to green over the weekend, I have no chance, because today I got through with grit. But it could also be that this was the bad day and I got through it under par,” pondered the Spanish player.
– Pablo Larrazábal (-6) finished the round on the 9th hole with a painful double bogey that knocked him out of the tournament’s top ten, but it would be unfair to focus only on that unfortunate finish to an otherwise notable round of golf that, among other things, started with three birdies in the first four holes. The Barcelona native, in any case, is also in a position to put up a fight over the weekend.
– Just like Rory McIlroy (-6), who for a moment brought the spectre of the cut into the equation with two consecutive bogeys on the 11th and 12th holes, but responded with four birdies in the final third of the round. Does anyone doubt that the Northern Irishman will find a way to get into the fight for victory? It’s very difficult to bet against him.
– Finally, the cumulative score of -1 was outside the cut, so Ángel Ayora (-1) will not be able to defend his position in the Race to Dubai this week. It’s a step back in the fight to secure a PGA Tour card, no doubt, but it’s worth noting that he still has room to manoeuvre in Korea, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai. Also missing the weekend are Joel Moscatel (+3) and Ángel Hidalgo (+5). Those who will be there include Eugenio Chacarra (-5), Alfredo García Heredia (-4), Manu Elvira (-3), Nacho Elvira (-3), and Rafa Cabrera Bello (-2).
