Rahil Gangjee. Pic: V Krishnaswamy
Kanagawa, Japan, May 15: Rahil Gangjee, who made the cut on the line in the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup on the Japan Tour continued to improve as he added 2-under 70 in the third round at the Sagamihara Country Club.
Gangjee (74-72-70) is now even par for 54 holes and lies T-39th after three days.
Gangjee starting from the tenth had a good start with birdies on 11th and 13th and a bogey on 14th was made up with a birdie on 18th. He turned in 2-under. On his second nine, Gangjee birdies fourth, bogeyed fifth, birdies sixth and again bogeyed seventh to finish with 70.
This season Gangjee has played four events and made the cut in two.
Rikuya Hoshino, who began the week with a modest 72 added 65-69 in the second and third rounds to rise to the top at 10-under. He leads by two over Yosuke Asaji (69) and Ryuko Tokimatsu (69). Hoshino, who won the Fujisankei Classic in 2020 added Kansai Open win in 2021 as the two seasons are being combined due to the pandemic.
Shaun Norris, who shot 62 on the second day, dropped to T-11 with a 75 on the third day.
This week’s winner will get a spot into the British Open.
Round 1 – Modest start for Rahil Gangjee in Japan
Kanagawa, Japan, May 14: Rahil Gangjee had a less than satisfactory start with 2-over 74 in the first round of the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup on the Japan Tour.
On a tough and rainy day at the Sagamihara Country Club, Gangjee had two birdies on the front nine and four bogeys between 9th and 18th. He was lying T-61st.
This season Gangjee has played four events and made the cut in two.
Ryosuke Kinoshita played well for a bogey free round of 68, which could have been better but for a missed birdie chance on 18th. He shared the lead with Yuta Sugiura and eight players were bunched at 3-under 69.
Last week at the Japan Players Championship, Ryosuke missed the cut for the first time this year.
This week’s winner will get a spot into the British Open, but Ryosuke already has his ticket which he earned by finishing T-6 at SMBC Singapore Open in 2019.
