Khalin Joshi remained bogey-free through 18 holes, following his opening 29 with a four-under 30 to reach nine-under at Fairway Golf & Lake Resort.

Khalin Joshi extended his advantage to two strokes after another bogey-free performance in the second round of the inaugural INR 1 crore Nava Raipur Open.

The 34-year-old Bengaluru golfer (29-30) made four birdies to reach nine-under 59 at the halfway stage at Fairway Golf & Lake Resort.

Heavy rain left the course unsuitable for full 18-hole rounds, prompting the Tournament Committee to conduct each of the tournament’s four rounds over the back nine.

Joshi, who began the day with a one-shot lead, opened with a birdie after finding the fairway with a hybrid and hitting his approach close. He again capitalised on the 10th, 12th and 13th—three holes he has birdied in both rounds.

“My game has been solid from tee to green,” Joshi said. “I’ve been hitting my approaches close to the flags, so I haven’t faced too many long birdie putts.”

A two-time DP World PGTI winner this season, Joshi entered the week 12th in the Race to the DP World India Championship. He is yet to drop a shot through the opening 18 holes.

Kolkata’s 20-year-old Aryav Shah, Nepal’s Subash Tamang, Bengaluru’s Akshay Neranjen and Panchkula’s Raunil Kukar shared second place at seven-under 61.

Tamang made the biggest move among the chasers, producing five birdies in a bogey-free 29—the joint-lowest score of the round.

Seven players were another stroke back at six-under, including 2024 DP World PGTI Rankings champion Veer Ahlawat and Sunit Chowrasia, who earned promotion after winning three consecutive NexGen events.

The cut fell at three-under 65, with 56 players from the original field of 132 advancing to the final two rounds.

Photo – PGTI