Flawless Atwal soars to tied 7th after Rd3 of PGA tourney

Irving: Arjun Atwal went on a birdie-firing spree as he turned in a flawless six-under 64 to

soar to the tied seventh spot after the penultimate round of the HP Byron Nelson Golf Championship here. The Orlando-based sank in a six birdies -- three in each nine -- to total six-under 204. The other Indian in fray, Jeev Milkha Singh too did well with a two-under 68 that helped him rise to the tied 23rd spot with a total of two-under 207. Atwal, who has been battling injury breakdowns and poor form for the past one year, was in sparkling form and struck a birdie-hat-trick, gaining shots on the fifth, sixth and seventh, to make the turn three-under. The Indian continued his fine form in the backward journey as well and picked up birdies on the 12th, 14th and 15th holes to round off a brilliant day. Like Atwal, Jeev too played out a bogey-free front nine studded with back-to-back birdies on the third and fourth. On his way back, Jeev found a birdie on the 10th but stumbled to a bogey on the 17th. At the top, Australian Jason Day (67) took a sole two-stroke lead with a total of 12-under 198. American Blake Adams (70) followed him at the second spot. PTI