Diksha shoots another fine round, lies sixth; Pranavi and Avani are 19th

Diksha Dagar of India. 

Khel Today Bureau

Wollongong, Australia: Diksha Dagar added another good round of 3-under 68 and moved to 7-under after the second round of the Ford Women’s Open in Wollongong Golf Club. Diksha who was Tied-fourth after the first round is now Tied-sixth as Sara Kouskova (67-63) joined England’s Mimi Rhodes (68-62) to take the shared lead. The leaders were at 12-under and five ahead of Diksha.

Also making the cut with solid second round cards were Pranavi Urs (71-68) and rookie Avani Prashanth (72-67). At 3-under for 36 holes they were Tied-19^th.

Diksha opened with a birdie on the first but dropped a shot on the fifth for the second day running. She made up with a birdie on the seventh only to drop a shot on Par-5 ninth for the second time in as many rounds. Diksha once again made ample use of scoring on back with three birdies on the 13^th, 17^th and the 18^th and no bogeys for a 68.

On a course where the back nine starts on the ninth, Pranavi ha a birdie start and added further birdies on the 14^th, 16^th and the 17^th. There were no more birdies and she dropped a shot on the seventh for a 68.

Avani, who has won pro titles on her home Tour, the Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour  and the LETAS while being an amateur, opened birdie-birdie on the front nine and had further birdies on the ninth, 10^th, 13^th, 15^th and the 16^th but closed with a bogey. She earlier dropped shots on the fourth and the fifth in her 67.

Both Mimi and Sara carded career-low rounds but the second round was yet to be completed as 10 players are still left to finish as darkness set in New South Wales.

Rhodes had a round to remember carding 10 birdies en route to a course-record 62. This included a fabulous finishing birdie at the par-3 8th after she had to wait over an hour to make the 10-foot putt because of a thunder and lightning suspension.

With little light left on Friday evening, Kouskova matched the rookie’s tally thanks to a bogey-free round of 63 (-8).

The Czech star also had to deal with the thunder suspension being pulled from the 13th hole where she was putting for eagle. Kouskova kept her composure after the restart to convert the eagle. She would card six birdies elsewhere for a flawless round of golf.

In solo third on nine-under par is one of yesterday’s leaders, Kirsten Rudgeley (65-68) at 9-under. Spain’s Blanca Fernandez and Sweden’s Moa Folke share fourth on eight-under par.

The cut currently sits at one-over par with 10 players still left to finish at Wollongong Golf Club.