New Delhi, October 17 (H.S.): AM Green Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL) standouts Shiv Kapur and Karandeep Kochhar have secured places in the weekend rounds of the DP World India Championship after finishing the opening two rounds at level par, with a combined score of 144 at the Delhi Golf Club. Spain’s Eugenio Chacarra leads the tournament at the halfway stage with a 10-under-par total of 134, holding a one-shot advantage over the field.

Three players from the AM Green IGPL took part in the tournament. Kapur and Kochhar carded identical rounds of 72 to make the cut, while Sachin Baisoya failed to progress. Baisoya had entered the field as a replacement for Gaganjeet Bhullar, an 11-time Asian Tour winner and five-time IGPL champion, who withdrew from the tournament due to back pain.

Chacarra continued his impressive record in India, carding 67 in each of the first two rounds. Despite dropping a shot late in the second round, he remained at the top of the leaderboard with a 10-under-par total of 134. In four previous appearances in India, Chacarra has won one title and finished inside the top five on two other occasions.

Scotland’s Scott Jamieson occupies second place at nine-under-par 135. Ángel Hidalgo, Adrian Meronk, Joost Luiten, Thomas Detry and Joel Girrbach are tied for third at eight under par.

World-renowned golfer Rory McIlroy is four shots behind Chacarra at six-under-par 138, while defending champion Tommy Fleetwood is at five under par. Five of the seven major champions competing in the tournament successfully made the cut.

Kapur finished third earlier this month at the RVR Delhi Blue Bulls event, while Kochhar secured second place behind Gaganjeet Bhullar at the AM Green Krishna IGPL Invitational held in Hyderabad last week. Both players have carried their strong form into this prestigious four-million-dollar tournament, which features several leading international golfers, including six-time major champion McIlroy.

Three-time Asian Tour winner Kapur benefited from his familiarity with the Delhi Golf Club course, where he won an Asian Tour title in 2017. He closed his second round with a birdie and carded consecutive rounds of 72 to comfortably make the cut.

Kochhar also recorded rounds of 72 on both days. He won an AM Green IGPL tournament in the United Arab Emirates last year and added another notable achievement in 2025 by claiming the Red Sea Open title on the Asian Development Tour.

Kapur and Kochhar are tied for 63rd place at level par, alongside Saptak Talwar, who carded 71 in the first round and 73 in the second. All three will look to improve their positions over the final 36 holes.

Om Prakash Chouhan is currently the leading Indian player in the tournament, tied for 29th place at four-under-par 140. He opened with a 68 before recording a 72 in the second round. When play resumed on Saturday morning following weather-related delays, Chouhan recovered well after an early double bogey to finish the round strongly.

Yuvraj Sandhu also produced an impressive recovery. After opening with a 75, he returned a 68 in the second round. He was three over par after the first seven holes of his second round but fought back by making seven birdies over the final 10 holes, including four across the last five.

Sandhu finished at one-under-par 143, tied for 53rd place alongside experienced golfer Anirban Lahiri. Lahiri carded rounds of 70 and 73. His most recent international victory came in 2015 at the Delhi Golf Club.

For Kapur and Kochhar, making the weekend rounds offers more than an opportunity to improve their positions on the leaderboard. It also gives them a chance to demonstrate that their performances on the AM Green IGPL circuit can translate into competitive results against a strong international field.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar