PGTI Tour: Khalin Joshi maintains lead with hard-fought 69 in Round 3 of Bengaluru Open

Bengaluru, Sep 24 (IANS) Khalin Joshi returned a three-under 69 to maintain his lead with a three-shot advantage after round three of the INR 1 crore Bengaluru Open 2026 at the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) in Bengaluru on Thursday.

The 34-year-old Bengaluru golfer (61-68-69), who began the day with a six-stroke advantage, made an eagle on the par-five fifth and three birdies against two bogeys to reach 18-under 198 heading into the final round.

Gurugram’s Manu Gandas (69-68-64), the 2023 Rankings champion, produced the lowest score of the day with a bogey-free eight-under 64. Gandas climbed from tied third to second at 15-under 201, reducing Joshi’s lead by three shots.

Gandas, currently 20th in the Race to India Championship, made eight birdies, including three in succession from the 10th through the 12th. Current Race to India Championship leader Saptak Talwar (67-70-68) of Greater Noida moved into sole third place at 11-under 205 after posting a four-under 68 featuring five birdies and one bogey. Gurugram’s Veer Ahlawat (68-69-69) and local teenager Manoj S (65-70-71) shared fourth place at 10-under 206.

Joshi found the third round considerably more demanding as the wind strengthened, the greens quickened, and the flag positions became more challenging. “It was a challenging round. I didn’t strike the ball particularly well, but I held the round together and avoided playing myself out of the tournament. I’m still in a comfortable position and looking forward to tomorrow,” Khalin said.

Joshi’s eagle on the fifth provided the highlight. After his tee shot narrowly avoided the hazard, he lay up before hailing a lob wedge from 94 yards. “I played it as a 102-yard shot into the wind because I knew there was a backstop beyond the hole. The ball landed past the pin, spun back and went in,” he added.

The leader later made a three-putt and dropped another shot on the 15th after his drive found a plugged lie in a bunker. He limited the damage to a bogey before responding with birdies on his final two holes. “The three-putt came from a poor first putt and a slight lapse in concentration,” Joshi said. “On the 15th, I didn’t hit a good tee shot and was unlucky with the lie, but I made a good bogey and finished strongly with two birdies.”

The fifth begins a pivotal three-hole risk-reward stretch at KGA. The par five is reachable in two but has water and trees guarding either side, while the sixth and seventh are long par fours, with water also coming into play on the sixth. The ninth provides another demanding test as a lengthy par-four.

The short par-four 10th and downwind par-five 11th offer the best scoring opportunities, while the closing stretch is more exacting. The tight par-four 17th features an elevated green, and the tree-lined par-five 18th is protected by strategically positioned bunkers.

Wind has been a factor throughout the tournament, while rain before the event softened the fairways and reduced the run from the tee. Despite the rain, the greens have remained firm and smooth, running at 11 on the Stimpmeter following strong work by the KGA greenkeeping team.

Manu Gandas took advantage of the putting surfaces to close the gap on Joshi, converting a lot of opportunities on the greens. “For the past three days, I’ve been giving myself plenty of birdie chances,” Gandas said. “The difference today was that I converted more of them. It was a well-balanced round, and going bogey-free for the second consecutive day was particularly satisfying,” he added.

Longer birdie putts on the second and 12th helped sustain the momentum of his charge. “Both putts rolled exactly as I had visualised. Those conversions kept the round moving in the right direction,” Gandas said.

Gandas also drew confidence from his history at KGA, where he enjoyed success during his junior career. “I have some wonderful memories here, including a couple of victories as a junior,” he said. “The course is in excellent condition, and I’m pleased to be in contention heading into the final round.”

Local lad Chikkarangappa struck a hole-in-one on the 13th during his round of 73. He was placed tied 33rd at one-over 217.

The Bengaluru Open is the final tournament before the top 60 on the 2026 PGTI Order of Merit are confirmed. The players finishing inside the top 60 at the end of this event will retain their playing rights for the 2026-27 season.

–IANS

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