Sports India

Jeev Milkha Singh returned an impressive three-under 68 card to rise to the tied 10th spot after the second round of the 120 million yen Omaezaki Golf Tournament here on Friday.

The seasoned pro dropped a bogey on each nine against five birdies to accumulate a two-day total of four-under 138 and remain in contention for another top-five finish at the Japan Golf Tour event.

Playing his back nine first, Jeev parred the first five holes before dropping a shot on the 15th, his sixth, but recovered with back-to-back birdies on the next two holes to be one-under at the halfway mark.

Resuming his journey, Jeev parred the first two holes before slotting three birdies over the next five holes. The Indian, in fact, could have joined five others at the tied fifth position but for the dropped shot on the final hole.

At the top of the table, Soushi Tajima carded a brilliant four-under 67 to take his two-day tally to 10-under 132, opening up a three-shot lead over the S K Ho-Tomokazu Yoshinaga duo.

An erratic front nine over which had one double bogey and two bogeys saw Jeev Milkha Singh slide down 18 places to be tied 28th after the third round on Saturday at the golf tournament in Omazaeki.

Jeev shot one-over 72 to total three-under 210 after three days here.

The lead continued to be in the possession of Soushi Tajima, who despite a round of even par 71 was 10-under and one shot clear of the field.

Jeev had a disastrous start with a bogey on first and another on fifth. He also double bogeyed the eighth and despite birdies on fourth and seventh he was two-over for front nine. On the back stretch, he was one-under with a birdie on 13th.

Jeev has had four top-10 finishes in six starts in Japan but will need a great final round to get an another top-10.

Behind leader Tajima, there were three players, Australian Paul Sheehan (67), thai Thammannoon Srirot (68) and the consistent S K Ho (69) all at nine-under. Five players were at eight-under and they Toru Taniguchi and Tomohiro Kondo.

Jeev will need a round of about five-under to have a shot at a top-10 finish once again.

Jeev Milkha Singh sank three birdies in five holes over his second nine to record a three-under 68 in the second round of The Golf Tournament, Omazaeki, at the par-71 Shizuoka Country Hamaoka Course & Hotel.

Jeev, who may have been even better placed but for his bogey on the last hole, rose from overnight 30th to tied 10th, seven shots off the pace with a total of four-under par.

The leader continued to be Soushi Tajima, who added four-under 67 to his first round 65 to be 10-under, three clear of second placed SK Ho, who had a three-under 68 on the second day.

Ho was the best Asian Tour player at last week’s British Open with a tied 11th place finish.

“There are still 36 holes to go,” said Jeev, who in five years has yet to win on Japan Tour. This year, Jeev has four top-10 finishes in six starts in Japan.

The Chandigarh golfer improved his putting from 29 to 26 putts, but he dropped a crucial shot on his last hole of the day, the ninth.

He started on 10th and had a bogey on 15th, but recovered quickly with birdies on the 16th and 17th. He had birdies on third, fourth and seventh and was four-under, when he dropped a shot on ninth, but for which he would have been tied fifth.

Ho is tied for second with Tomakazu Yoshinaga (67) at seven-under, while Thammannoon Srirot (66) is fourth at six-under.

Five players including Satoru Hirata (66), Scott Laycock (70) and Paul Sheehan (71), Liang Wen Chong (70) and Ryoken Kawagashi (69) are tied fifth, one shot ahead of eight players, including Jeev, who are at four-under.

The second half of the season will be an eagerly awaited challenge as it marks the return of the Asian Tour stars that have proved their mettle during the mid-year break.

While many were enjoying the summer break with family and friends, a handful of Asian Tour stalwarts have kept a busy schedule in Japan, Europe and United States.

Among the players that took home a bag of experience was Thailand’s Thaworn Wiratchant who had an inspirational run when he finished in the top half of the table at The Open Championship on Sunday. India’s Jeev Milkha Singh walked tall with a top-ten finish at the UBS Japan Golf Tour Championship in July as Thai sensation Thongchai Jaidee was ranked joint 12th at the Barclays Scottish Open.

“Although I played well this week, I don’t think I will return for the Dunhill Links Championship later this year as it will be too cold for me to handle. I would prefer to stay in Asia and play a handful in Europe,” said Thaworn.

Singh’s strong performance has not only kept his momentum going throughout the off season period but also helped reinforce his stature as one of the best in the region. His top-ten performance in Japan was backed by a superb showing in Ireland when he claimed fourth spot at the Smurfit European Open.

The Asian Tour young guns were also in the thick of the fray with India’s latest star Shiv Kapur and Aussie duo of Andrew Buckle and Jarrod Lyle making their debut appearance at the British Open.

It was an adventurous break for Buckle who competed in his first ever major. Buckle, who is ranked third on the Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit, had to make a last minute dash to compete at Royal Liverpool Golf Club as he replaced South African Trevor Immelman. On the other side of the world, Buckle had previously chalked up a third place finish at the Peek n’ Peak Classic in New York.

“I definitely will come back to Asia for the Barclays Singapore Open (in September) and if I play well in the US, I might even come back early to Asia to play in a few more,” said Buckle.

Asian Tour’s Zhang Lian-wei and Liang Wen-chong will also create history in United States when they compete at The International at Castle Pines Golf Club in Colorado. It will be the first time two Chinese players will be in the field for a US PGA Tour event.

The excitement on the Asian Tour will continue with the staging of the Crowne Plaza Open, Brunei Open and Johor Open as the first three events lined-up for the second half of the season.

And with the quality performance displayed by the Asian Tour players on the international stage the past weeks, it merely reflects what is in store in the coming months when they tee off once again in search for glory in Asia.

Playing at his happy hunting ground, Japan Tour, Jeev Milkha Singh ovecame a poor start and didn’t allow the occasional hiccups derail his campaign to finish tied 30th with an opening round card of one-under 70 in the 120 million yen Omaezaki Golf Tournament here on Thursday.

The highest ranked Indian golfer shunned extravaganza and played sedate golf, mixing a birdie quintet and a bogey treble in his round at the par-71 Shizuoka Country Hamaoka Course.

Jeev began on an ominous note, bogeying the very first hole but picked up a shot on the fourth before another bogey on the very next hole undid the good work. Jeev soon responded, picking up another shot on the sixth and parred the next three to complete his halfway journey without any damage.

On his back nine, the Indian slotted a birdie on the 10th but was held back again with a dropped shot on the 13th. The UBS Asian Tour Order of Merit leader then parred the next four holes and signed off with a birdie to round off his modest outing.

Soushi Tajima reeled off five birdies over the last six holes in his scintillating round of six-under 65 to grab the lead with the trio of Sushi Ishigaki, Yutaka Horinouchi and Paul Sheehan breathing down his neck just one shot adrift.

Jeev Milkha Singh continues his journey on the Japan Tour, as he tees up for The Golf Tournament, Omazaeki, at the Shizuoka Country Hamaoka Course and Hotel here today.

The 34-year-old Indian, who revels in playing tournaments rather than taking a break for training, has been playing on the trot for almost four months.

Jeev is now the highest ranked Indian in world rankings at 146th, moving ahead of Jyoti Randhawa (164th), Arjun Atwal (183rd) and Shiv Kapur (184th).

Starting with his win at the Volvo China Open in April, he has played every week, including the one before the US Open, where he played 36 holes in a single day to qualify for the US Open and has been achieving some terrific results.

In 14 tournament starts since then, Jeev has raked up a phenomenal performance of eight top-10 finishes and has missed the cut only twice.

He made the cut at the US Open finishing tied 58th and his other two finishes have been tied 21st at Wales Open and tied 31st Munsingwear KSB Open in Japan .

“I am playing well and enjoying it. So, there is no question of being tired,” said Jeev, who tied fifth last week at Sega Sammy Cup.

“I am hitting well and as long as I am in contention, I know I can win any week.”

Jeev is doing very well on the Order of Merit on all three tours. He leads the rankings in Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit; he is 19th in Japan and 35th in Europe.

At Omazaeki, Jeev is paired with Jun Kikuchi and Satoru Hirota in the first two rounds.

Ace Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh slipped to tied eighth after a topsy-turvy back nine at the Sega Sammy Cup golf tournament on Saturday.

Jeev had two bogeys, a double bogey and two birdies as he ended the day with a one-over 73 and a total of two-over to be two-under for three days.

He, who was four behind leader Yeh Wei Tze (72), was sharing the 8th place with Chris Campbell (69) and Kenichi Kuboya (75).

Jeev, starting on the first, birdied the seventh and ninth and dropped a shot on the eighth to turn in one-under.

Then on the back nine, he bogeyed the 10 th and 12th, as he missed short par putts but he did make up with a birdie on the 11th.

Three pars followed from 13th to the 15th. On the 16th, he double bogeyed and just as he came to the end, he birdied the 18th to finish with a 73.

Wei Tze, who birdied third and eighth, bogeyed three times in four holes between ninth and 12th. He recovered for a series of pars and finally a birdie on the 18 th for a 72 that kept him at six-under and in top spot.

Azuno Yano (70) and Hidemasa Hoshino (73) were at five-under and in tied second place, while four players YE Yang (73), Chawalit Plaphol (74), Shoichi Ideguchi (72) and Liang Wen-chong (72) were at three-under in tied fourth.

Jeev has had four top-10 finishes in six starts in Japan this season.

golfer Jeev Milkha Singh continues his journey on the Japan tour as he tees-up for the Golf Tournament, Omazaeki, at the Shizuoka Country Hamaoka Course and Hotel here tomorrow.

The 34-year-old Indian, who revels in playing tournaments rather than taking break for training, has been playing on the trot for almost four months. Jeev is now the highest ranked Indian in world rankings at 146th, moving ahead of Jyoti Randhawa (164th), Arjun Atwal (183rd) and Shiv Kapur (184th).

Starting with his win at the Volvo China Open in April, he has played every week, including the one before the US Open, where he played 36 holes in a single day to qualify for the US Open and has been achieving some terrific results.

In 14 tournament starts since then, Jeev has raked up a phenomenal performance of eight top-10 finishes and has missed the cut only twice.

He made the cut at the US Open finishing tied 58th and his other two finishes have been tied 21st at Wales Open and tied 31st Munsingwear KSB Open in Japan .

“I am playing well and enjoying it. So, there is no question of being tired,” said Jeev, who tied fifth last week at Sega Sammy Cup.

“I am hitting well and as long as I am in contention, I know I can win any week.”

Jeev is doing very well on the order of merit on all three tours. He leads the rankings in Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit; he is 19th in Japan and 35th in Europe.

At Omazaeki, Jeev is paired with Jun Kikuchi and Satoru Hirota in the first two rounds.

Thanks to his tied fifth finish at the Sega Sammy Cup in Hokkaido, Jeev Milkha Singh climbed up two notches to 146th and consolidated his stature as the highest ranked Indian golfer, while Arjun Atwal too moved up a rung to 183, overtaking compatriot Shiv Kapur in the process.

Jeev could not qualify for the British Open and returned to his happy hunting ground, the Japan Tour, and the seasoned Indian came up with yet another top-five finish that saw him reaching the 146th spot with 1.11 average points, according to the Official World Golf Ranking announced on Monday.

Randhawa (.99), the country’s highest ranked golfer for long but not in the best of form in the recent past, slid three rungs to 164.

Orlando-based Arjun Atwal (.88), who finally seemed to have arrested his slide in the PGA Tour, improved his position by a place and reached 183, after his tied 17th finish in the three million dollar BC Open at the Atunyote Golf Course near New York.

Shiv Kapur (.88), who missed the cut in his maiden major appearance at the just-concluded British Open, slipped nine rungs to finish at 184.

At the top of the table, Tiger Woods, after his emotional two-stroke triumph over fellow American Chris DiMarco in the British Open, leads the chart with an 8.51 average point lead over nearest rival and compatriot Phil Mickelson.

Top 10: 1. Tiger Woods, USA (18.28) 2. Phil Mickelson, USA (9.77) 3. Vijay Singh, Fiji (8.23) 4. Jim Furyk, USA (7.34) 5. Retief Goosen, South Africa (7.01) 6. Adam Scott, Australia (6.14) 7. Ernie Els, South Africa (5.98) 8. Geoff Ogilvy, Australia (5.80) 9. Sergio Garcia, Spain (5.45) 10. Luke Donald, England (4.95).

Jeev Milkha Singh fired a one-under 71 in the second round of the Sega Sammy Cup on the Japan PGA tour to move into tied seventh place at the midway stage on Friday.

Jeev, who has four top-10 in six starts on Japan Tour this season, shot four birdies and three bogeys.

The lead was shared by Taiwan’s Yeh Wei Tze (68) and local man Hidemasa Hoshino (66) at six-under 138 for two days.

Jeev, who had a 70 on first day, started 10th and birdied the 13th and 14th but he also dropped shots on the 11th and 15th to turn in even par.

On the front nine of the course, which was his back nine, Jeev birdied the first and sixth and dropped a shot on fifth.

Jeev could have finished at least three shots better but for some missed putts. He took 30 putts in all. Jeev was tied ninth after the first day.

Three players Greg Meyer (69), Kenichi Kuboya (70) and Chawalit Plaphol (72) were at five-under 139. One shot further down was YE Yang (72) in sole sixth place. Six players including Jeev Milkha Singh (71) were tied at seventh at three-under 141.

Jeev has been having a promising season as he leads the Asian Tour’s UBS Order of Merit, while he is 35th on European Money List and 21 st in Japan. He also has nine top-10 finishes this year