Ajeetesh Sandhu shot a bogey-free 3-under 70 to emerge as the top Indian player midway through the US$2 million International Series Morocco. Sandhu, who was 1-under in the first round, improved to 4-under and is currently Tied-25th. Gaganjeet Bhullar, a four-time IGPL winner, slipped to T-47 despite a strong performance with four consecutive birdies on the front nine.
Karandeep Kochhar, another IGPL winner, also at T-47, was the only other Indian to make the cut. However, seven out of the 10 Indian players who started missed the cut, including Shauryra Bhattacharya, SSP Chawrasia, and Anirban Lahiri, falling short by just one shot. Rashid Khan, Aryan Roopa Anand, and Udayan Mane were among those who exited early.
In the meantime, Bubba Watson, a two-time Masters champion, joined Thailand’s Pavit Tangkamolprasert at the top of the leaderboard. Watson displayed excellent golfing skills at the Royal Golf Dar Es Salam’s Red Course, carding a seven-under par 66, the lowest round of the day, to tie with Pavit at 11-under 135 total.
Watson’s exceptional performance included hitting 15 of the 18 fairways and securing eight birdies with only one bogey. Sandhu, on the other hand, managed to birdie the fifth, 11th, and 12th holes without dropping any shots, while Bhullar faced challenges with three bogeys and a double bogey but fought back with four birdies in four holes.
The leaders, Watson and Pavit, were closely followed by Korea’s Younghan Song, who stood at 10-under. Travis Smyth of Australia, the International Series Japan champion, and the current Asian Tour Order of Merit leader, moved up to a tie for fourth place at nine-under par alongside defending champion Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe and Taichi Kho of Hong Kong, who is in good form.
The Thai duo of Jazz Janewattananond and Suteepat Prateeptienchai were tied at eight-under. Watson’s last victory was at the Travelers Championship on the PGA Tour in June 2018, showcasing his strong ball-striking and superb putting skills with just 26 putts needed for his success.
Pavit faced a challenging start with two bogeys in the first eight holes, leaving him one-over par. However, he managed to recover by picking up strokes on the 17th and 18th holes for a three-under-par 70, similar to his performance in the opening round. Mehdi El Fakori was the sole Moroccan player to make the cut with consistent rounds of 74 and 70.
