Vani Kapoor jumps to sole lead

Panchkula: Delhi golfer Vani Kapoor shot a four-over 76 to grab the top spot after the second round of the sixth leg of Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour 2013 on Wednesday.

Vani, who was tied second after the first round, has now opened up a three-shot lead over the trio of Saaniya Sharma, Neha Tripathi and Gursimar Badwal, who are tied at the second place. Vani, who played extremely well in her maiden season as a pro last year, made a strong comeback today, carding three birdies on the third, fifth and 14th holes to finish the second day on top with a total score of 154. She had bogeys on the first, second, fourth, sixth, 12th, 15th and 18th at the Panchkula Golf Club. Local girl Saaniya came up with the best score of the day with a two over 74 which propelled her from her overnight tied 10th position to a tied second place after round two. She carded four birdies on the third, 10th, 11th and 16th. Neha, who was tied eighth after round one also made a strong comeback and carded three birdies on the sixth, 10th and 12th holes to score three over 75 on day two. Amateur golfer Gursimar Badwal continued her fine form and sank birdies on the fifth and 12th to retain her tied second place with a round two score of 79. Meanwhile overnight leader Smriti Mehra and Rani Sonti were suspended from the next event by the referees on disciplinary grounds and also fined. Reacting to their suspension both the players withdrew from the ongoing tournament. Commenting on the incident, Champika Sayal, Secretary General, WGAI said, "Etiquette is a fundamental of Golf that players are required to adhere to at all times. The Rules of Golf do not have any stanzas contradicting fair play. The decision of appointed Referees has been deemed final and should have been respected." PTI