All hopes on Atwal, as Jeev misses the cut

NEW DELHI, February 8: It was a hard day for the Indians as several reputations got dented in round two of the $2.5 million Indian Masters at the Delhi Golf Club on Friday.
After grabbing sole lead in the opening round of the $2.5 million Indian Masters at the Delhi Golf Club, India's ace golfer Jyoti Randhawa put up a dismal show on Friday as he carded a 5-over 77 in round two to be tied 15th with five others.
In pics, Round Two: Indian Masters
Day 1: Randhawa shines as Els struggles
Randhawa couldn't live up to the home crowd expectations, as he bogeyed four holes in all and triple bogeyed the 6th. He shot just two birdies - on the 2nd and the 8th.
"Today's round was a disaster. I want to forget about it. I started with a bogey, made too many after that. And then I just started losing focus," said a disappointed Randhawa, who fired a sizzling 7-under 65 in a flawless round one.
"But still I think going to the weekend with a under par score, I still have a good chance," he added.
The men who kept India's hopes alive were Arjun Atwal and Digvijay Singh. Atwal closed day two with a 2-under 70 to be tied 6th on 4-under with five others, including compatriot Digvijay Singh. Despite missing a couple of birdie chances, Atwal shot six birdies to put up a good score on the leaderboard.
"Starting with the ninth hole where I missed a two feet birdie putt, then at the 13th hole I missed it by three feet and then at the 18th hole. I've got to iron it out as I head for the weekend rounds," said a delighted Atwal
SSP Chowrasia also put up a good show for India, as he carded a total of 3-under with a second round finish at 71. Chowrasia shared the 12th spot with two others.
"I am very happy overall and feeling good. Putting is my strength. This is one of my favourite courses in India besides the RCGC in Kolkata," said a happy Chowrasia.
Jeev Milkha Singh was the biggest disappointment amongst the Indian contingent. Jeev, who recently finished the Dubai desert Classic tied 19th, couldn't make the cut at the first ever European Tour event in India. Jeev bogeyed 7 holes and ended the day with 5-over 77 to share the 102nd spot with four others after round two.
Shiv Kapur too put up a dismal show on day two as he carded a 6-over 78 to be tied 55th.
"I didn't hit well today. My ball landed in the bushes on too many occasions.I was fighting hard but things were not working for me. I have to be a little more aggressive tomorrow. 65 or 64 would be a good score to get me back in contention," said Kapur.
McGrane plans to spoil Indian party
The man who took away the honours after a splendid display on day two was Damien McGrane from Ireland. He took the lead at halfway stage and sustained it until the day's play got over for all the contenders. McGrane finished the second round with 69 to stay on top of the leaderboard with a total of 8-under.
McGrane shot five birdies and bogeyed two in round two. The Irish played a superb first round too, as he was tied second with England's Richard Finch on day one at 67. McGrane, ranked 311 in the world, hopes to put up a good show in the next two rounds as well.
"I would like to try to do the same thing day-in and day-out. I found a formula around the course that seems to be giving me good numbers, so try to hit the same clubs off the same tee boxes and give myself as many birdie opportunities as possible," said McGrane.
Graeme McDowell from Northern Ireland, South Africa's Hendrik Buhrmann and French Raphael Jacquelin were tied second at 6-under, after finishing round two at 69.
McDowell, who is happy to be playing at a golf course which tests completely different aspect of the game, was delighted with his performance.
"I played similar to how I did yesterday. The golf course, you can't get too fitted up on, you have to be very patient, hit it in the fairways as often as you can and that's kind of what I've been doing, hitting some pretty good irons and giving myself some chance," said a visibly pleased McDowell.
Watch out for Ernie Els
South African Ernie Els, tied 44th, managed to make the cut with a second round good finish at 70. The world number four golfer shot an eagle on the 8th and scored two birdies on the 14th and the 18th.
"Just that one hole yesterday and it could have been a little bit different but it was a tough day for me today, a tough day for scoring and I find it very difficult scoring on this golf course," explained Els.
"But I don't want to push too hard. Today I was okay but tomorrow I want to play on a better level," he added.