Omar Khalid eyes strong finish in Qatar Open

KARACHI: Pakistan’s Omar Khalid Hussain slipped to 7th position on the leaderboard after carding a round of four-over-par 76 on the second day of the Qatar Open Golf Championship at the Doha Golf Club on Friday.

On a day when England’s Calum Fitzgerald carded a stunning round of five-under-par 67 to take a solid seven-shot lead, Omar struggled on the fast and tricky greens and is now 10 shots off the pace going into the final round on Saturday.

Omar, who was just one shot behind the leaders after carding 75 in the opening round, was let down by his putting as he finished the second round with consecutive three-putts on the last four holes. “I didn’t play well today and my putting was really bad,” said the 19-year-old, who holds the record for being the youngest ever national amateur champion of Pakistan.

Omar is hoping to catch up with the leaders in the third and final round of the championship which is featuring around 100 players from 30 countries. “I am looking forward to giving my best tomorrow,” said Omar who has a 36-hole aggregate of 151. Fitzgerald, with rounds of 74 and 67, is at the top of the leaderboard at 141 followed by Daniil Sokolov and Kieth Crowley (148), Saleh Alkaabi, Andrew Ikstrums (149) and Tom Sweigart (150). The winner of the championship earns the right to play in the coveted Qatar Masters, a European Tour event.