Third day, first show for Gangjee
Even after finishing among the leaders at the Avantha Masters, Gangjee succumbed to the tendency again and, unlike on Friday, when no one was within earshot, the utterances, “Another flawless round but the best thing is just one bogey after three rounds,” before an audience resulted in a mild reprimand, reports Robin Bose.
The tendency to dwell on the past is normal and going with it, Rahil Gangjee spoke of how the mind refused to comply when the going was tough. “As golfers, we all know about staying positive, but when you’re doing badly, getting the mind to do the correct things is difficult.”
Even after finishing among the leaders at the Avantha Masters, Gangjee succumbed to the tendency again and, unlike on Friday, when no one was within earshot, the utterances, “Another flawless round but the best thing is just one bogey after three rounds,” before an audience resulted in a mild reprimand. “Why think about bogeys? Focus on the birdies and that you didn’t make eagle today,” said Pradeep Aggarwal, his mind trainer.
The reminder was enough to snap Gangjee’s tryst with the past. A smile appeared on the chubby face and words started to flow in present tense.
“Be it putting or driving, everything’s on song.” Being the part of a packed leadergroup, seven are in the fray, wasn’t disconcerting either. “It’s a while since I’ve been in this position but having seen it all, I know swhat to do tomorrow,” he chirped and the smile stayed put.
Tied 10th at eight-under 136, Gangjee was three shots adrift of the leader when the weather-hit second round wound up early on Saturday.
“Zoned-in”, the Kolkatan, who had three top-20s at the Asian Tour last season, targeted a six-under for the day. He fell short by three but as per the policy of “taking positives out of every situation”, he chose to soak in the feeling of being in contention.
The group of magnificent seven includes second round leader Chan Yih-shin of the Chinese Taipei and Tetsuji Hiratsuka.
Not many were around when the veteran Japanese completed his second round with a 62, which bettered the course record at the DLF Golf & Country Club. It was a phenomenal effort considering that the five-time winner on the Japan Golf Tour had a 73 in the opening round.
Gangjee started on a brisk note by picking up birdies on the 3rd and 7th but thereafter the putter fell silent.
“The greens got slower as the day wore on. The disappointment of missing a few birdie opportunities (on the 15th and 16th) is there but picking up a shot on the 18th was immensely satisfying,” he said.