All crowded at top

The 18th hole at the DLF Golf amp; Country Club seemed to be in a conspiracy with Rahil Gangjee on Saturday. Gangjee,who had only managed to stay close to the lead all through the third round of the Avantha Masters till then,landed his third shot two feet away from the pin and got his finishing hellip;

The 18th hole at the DLF Golf amp; Country Club seemed to be in a conspiracy with Rahil Gangjee on Saturday. Gangjee,who had only managed to stay close to the lead all through the third round of the Avantha Masters till then,landed his third shot two feet away from the pin and got his finishing birdie to get to an 11-under aggregate. Then,in each of the three groups that came after the Indians,there was a player with a share of the lead at 12-under while starting that last hole,and each of them,one after the other,promptly came and dropped a stroke.

All that last-minute action has given the leaderboard a very full look,and seven players including Gangjee will the last round with a share of the lead at 11-under 205. There are three more just a stroke behind,and another six names on the third rung at the European Tour tournament. Just anyones game,you would say,and thats why Gangjee might do well to keep destiny on his side.

The 31-year-old,who had only sealed his card for the current Asian Tour season with a sixth place at the season-ending tournament,had been three shots off the lead when second-round play began and there were fiery starts all over the course. But Gangjee stuck to keeping errors at the minimum and making the most of his great shot-making form. He picked up a birdie on the third hole,a long putt that he sank without even having taken out the flag from the cup. He also picked up a birdie on the par-four seventh before that closing one gave him a three-under 69. Last year,being in such a scenario wouldve probably affected me, Gangjee said. At this moment,though,my mind is clear and all Im thinking of is to keep playing as well as I have till now this week.

Playing three and five groups ahead,respectively,Swedens Fredrik Andersson Hed and Englishman Richard Bland were adding their own spice to the mix that was to be at the top. Both shot six-under 66s. Taipeis Chan Yin-shin,who had taken the second-round lead in the morning with the one hole he had left from the rain-hit Friday,shot a 72 in the third to be just sharing the crowded top slot now.

Japanese Tetsuji Hiratsuka,whose course-record 62 on the second day had been forgotten in the washing away of the Indian contingent,was one of the three who dropped a shot on that last hole on Saturday. Hiratsuka landed his third shot in some TV wires near the green and two-putted after his chip to drop down. Australian Darren Beck came in the next group,reaching the green in four and two-putting to lose a shot as well. Barry Lane followed,the grain costing him a stroke as he three-putted.

As far as Gangjee goes,when quirky good luck sticks to you on a Saturday evening at the golf course,ask it to stay another day.

Scores 3rd round: 1. 11-under: Rahil Gangjee IND 67-69-69,Richard Bland ENG 68-71-66,Fredrik Andersson Hed SWE 68-71-66,Tetsuji Hiratsuka JPN 73-62-70,Darren Beck AUS 70-65-70,Chan Yih-shin TPE 65-68-72,Barry Lane ENG 67-67-71; 8. 10-under: Kwanchai Tannin THA 68-68-70,David Drysdale SCO 68-67-71,Andrew Dodt AUS 67-68-71