Hitaashee jumps into lead as 12 Indians make the cut

Local girl Hitaashee Bakshi produced a bogey free round to jump to sole lead on the second day of the Hero Women’s Indian Open (HWIO) on Friday as 12 Indians made the cut going into the money rounds of $500,000 Ladies’ European Tour (LET) event.

- Shnatanu Srivastava

Hitaashee Bakshi.

(HT)

The 21-year-old Hitaashee carded 5-under 67 for a cumulative 7-under.

Teeing off from the front nine in the morning, Hitaashee scored birdies on par-5 fourth, par-4 seventh and par-5 eighth to get off to a strong start. She was equally consistent on the back nine, making birdies on the 12th and 13th holes and parring the rest. The tricky home stretch of the DLF — holes 16, 17, and 18 — were negotiated with caution.