Gill stays in contention as Cho grabs lead at Bharath Classic

India’s Pukhraj Singh Gill kept himself inside the top-10 despite a slow start, carding a composed two-under 70 in the second round of the US$500,000 Bharath Classic at Kensville Golf Resort. The event is co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and IGPL.

Gill, who opened with a career-best 66 to sit tied second overnight, struggled to get his irons firing on the front nine but avoided errors with 11 straight pars. Three birdies on the back nine offset a dropped shot on the par-5 15th, taking him to 8-under and tied seventh — the highest-placed Indian professional.

“I hit it even better than yesterday, but my irons didn’t set up enough chances,” the IGPL Jamshedpur champion said. “Still, eight-under on this course keeps me right in it.”

He was joined at T-7 by amateur Ishaan Chawhan, who continued his impressive run with rounds of 67–69 in his first appearance at this level.

Cho Moves Ahead; Chang Slips to Second

Korea’s Wooyoung Cho, the 2022 Asian Games gold medallist, surged into the outright lead with a second straight 66 to reach 12-under. Cho, currently 56th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and needing a strong finish to keep his card, caught fire with six birdies over his last 13 holes.

Round-one leader Heemin Chang followed his sparkling 64 with a bogey-free 69 but slipped to solo second at 11-under. Chang needs a victory this week to regain full status.

Spain’s Carlos Pigem shot the low round of the day — a bogey-free 65 — to move to 10-under alongside Thailand’s Panuphol Pittayarat.

Indians Make Moves

• Shaurya Binu, playing his maiden Asian Tour event, rose 48 places with a superb 66 powered by nine birdies.
• Yuvraj Sandhu, a five-time winner this year, rebounded from an even-par opener to post 6-under 66, climbing into T-14.
• Ajeetesh Sandhu (67–71) also sits at T-14 despite late bogeys.
• Two aces were recorded — Harold William on the 11th and Harendra Gupta on the 5th.

The cut fell at 2-over, with 72 players advancing to the weekend’s shotgun-start rounds. Among those missing out were Kartik Singh and Veer Ganapathy.

The Bharath Classic, the penultimate Asian Tour event of the year, carries extra weight for players chasing Order of Merit status, while the top four on the IGPL standings — including leader Aman Raj (73–68) and No. 2 Gill — are battling for coveted spots in the final stage of Asian Tour Q-School and the 2026 International Series India.

Photo – Asian Tour