Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour: Pranavi Urs shoots career-best but Gaurika Bishnoi leads in second leg

By PTI

HYDERABAD: Pranavi Urs, who spent almost a year waiting for her wrist to mend, showed that she will be a big factor this season by shooting a brilliant personal best bogey free 7-under 65 in the second round of Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour here on Thursday.

Pranavi, who had a modest 75 in the first round, is now 4-under 140 but still trails first round leader Gaurika Bishnoi (66-71) by three shots. Gaurika was also going great guns before a double bogey on the Par-4 10th set her back at the Boulder Hills Golf & Country Club.

Amateur Sneha Singh, a local, shot 70 on the heels of her first round 71. At 3-under 141 she is sole third, while Hitaashee Bakshi (74-70) is even par 144 and placed fourth. Pranavi, who started the 2021 season with a runner-up finish and a win in her first two events, then suffered a wrist fracture that virtually finished her season.

“It took a time to heal and there was a scare that I might aggravate it. Now it is almost 95 percent fine and I am feeling confident. I started the season well in 2021 and had a win and a 2nd but after that it was tough. I went to the LET Q-School and did not make it,” said Pranavi.

Pranavi, assisted by coach Steven Giuliano who is based in Singapore, has been working on her game and it has helped. “He is in Singapore and I am in Mysore, so we work online and when things get better I want to spend time with him in Singapore. We have worked on my iron play and the short game. It all came together today,” he added.

“It was great to shoot a personal best and my first ever bogey free round on the Hero WGAI Tour. I hope to build on this. I will try to get into some LET and LET Access Series events,” added Pranavi, who plans to try and play a few events in Europe also this year.

Pranavi has always had great starts to her season. In 2020 she was runner-up in the season’s first event as an amateur and then won the second leg, while still being an amateur. She turned pro and won the third leg and was second in the 5th.

Now she is hoping to put it all together for a solid 2022. Gaurika, who had a fine 66 on the first day, had a bogey on the second and a double on the 10th. Her birdies came on 5th, 7th, 14th and 16th. Sneha Singh, who is very familiar with this course, had three birdies against one bogey, while Hitaashee Bakshi had five birdies against three bogeys.

Nayanika Sanga (72), Shweta Mansingh (72) and Jahanvi Bakshi (73) are tied for sixth place, while Ridhima Dilawari (72-75) and amateur Jasmine Shekar (71-76) are tied eighth. Durga Nittur (77-72) and Jyotsana Singh (71-78) completes the Top-10.