Kuala Lumpur, Oct 13 (PTI) India's Anirban Lahiri and SSPChawrasia faced contrasting fortunes in the closing stages,even as the threat of lightning forced a four-hour stoppage onthe second day of the CIMB Classic here.
Lahiri, lying tied 8th overnight dropped to tied 23rdafter a round of 73, while Chawrasia, lying close to thebottom after 16 holes in the second, picked himself with twoclosing birdies for a 71. Chawrasia is now tied 45, almost thesame where he had started.
Lahiri's 73 was his first over-par round in the last 14rounds at TPC Kuala Lumpur, a period during which he won theMalaysian Open and finished tied 3rd at 2016 CIMB.
Pat Perez, making his fifth appearance at CIMB, turned ina solid seven-under 65 with eight birdies against one bogey tomove into sole lead at 13-under.
Perez had four birdies in a row from second to sixth andadded two more on eighth and ninth for an incredible six-undersecond nine after starting from the 10th.
Chasing Perez was Xander Schauffele, who carded anotherfine round of 67, that included an eagle, a par, a birdie anda bogey in a four-hole stretch from third to sixth. He movedhim to 12-under and sole second.
While Perez won the OHL Maykoba in the wrap-aroundsegment of the previous season, Schauffelle won the Greenbrierand ended the rookie year with a win at the TourChampionships, which was his last start before coming to CIMBfor a maiden appearance.
"It was one of those days, when things just didnÂ’t happenafter that good start," said Lahiri.
Earlier during the rain stoppage, he had said, "Raindelays is something we are used to in Malaysia."But possibly the early momentum was lost when players satout for a long period, waiting for the weather to clear.
Lahiri had just the kind of a start he would have wantedwith a birdie on the first and another one ready to be holedon second. That's when play was stopped and did not resumetill four hours later. When it did, Lahiri missed the birdieputt but made up with back-to-back gains on fourth and fifth.
Then it all turned the opposite way. A bogey on seventhwas followed by a couple of missed birdies, before a duffedchip cost him another bogey on 12th. On the 16th he hadanother bogey and on 18th he went into jungle and then cameonto the fairway before reaching the green in four. He neededto hole a 15-footer for par, but missed and finished at 73.
Chawrasia had a bogey on second, but before the rain camein he found a birdie on fourth and was even. A birdie onsixth, following a nice approach shot, saw him under par. The11th gave him pain for the second day running as he followedup his first day's double with a bogey today. Making it worsewas a bogey on 12th.
Hideki Matsuyama (68), the highest ranked player in thefield at No. 3 in the world, was tied 8th at six-under.
Perez, at 41, made his first Tour Championships lastmonth, and on the 2016-2017 PGA Tour season he won once andclaimed six other top-10s. He is bidding to become the oldestchampion in the CIMB Classic. PTI Cor AHAH.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.