Dhruv Sheoran and Manu Gandas Lead at Chennai Pro Championship 2024

On August 23, 2024, Dhruv Sheoran from Gurugram shot a brilliant five-under 67 to move up two spots and emerge as a joint leader with a total of 13-under 203 on day three of the Chennai Pro Championship 2024. The event is being held at the TNGF Cosmo Golf Course in Chennai.

Manu Gandas, also from Gurugram, signed for a four-under 68 to share the lead for the third consecutive day. Pune’s Rohan Dhole Patil, who was the co-leader at the halfway stage, struck a 71 to end the day in third place at 10-under 206. Faridabad’s Abhinav Lohan and Bangladesh’s Jamal Hossain were tied for fourth at eight-under 208.

Dhruv Sheoran, who was overnight third and one off the lead, posted a second consecutive 67. He carried forward the momentum from round two, where he had gone bogey-free. After one birdie on the front-nine, the 29-year-old Sheoran produced a moment of magic when he holed out his second shot with a terrific punch shot from close to the trees to sink an eagle on the Par-4 10th hole. Dhruv then sank three 12-feet birdies on the 13th, 14th, and 17th holes, with his only blemish being a bogey on the 15th.

Dhruv, currently 23rd in the PGTI Ranking, said, “I was focusing on one shot at a time and not getting too ahead of myself. The key was staying in the moment. I recently changed something in my putting that helped me put up good scores yesterday and today. My flawless second round on Wednesday really lifted my confidence. It gave me the much-needed momentum. Today, I stuck to the same gameplan as I did in round two.”

Manu Gandas, the co-leader on the first two days, continued at the top of the pack with his 68 that featured six birdies and two bogeys. Manu, currently second on the PGTI Order of Merit and looking for his ninth professional win, made a number of quality up and downs for birdies even as he struggled with his ball-striking. Gandas said, “It was once again an inconsistent round. I made quite a few mistakes and my putting was not up to the mark. I had three-putts on two occasions. The tee shots and approach shots weren’t up to my expectations either. Importantly, I hung in there and scrambled well around the greens to keep myself in contention. The up and downs for birdies towards the end helped me get back into rhythm. I’ll look to use my knowledge of this course to good advantage going into the final round.”

Chennai-based professional S Prasanth was placed tied 49th at four-over 220.