We thought we would give the scoreboard a quick glance before heading off for a "mass tete-a-tete" with Lewis Hamilton. And when we did our usual leaderboard scouting, we found Gaganjeet at seven-under and had almost closed the window before we caught sight of Chinnaswamy Muniyappa a little bit higher. The Bangalorean raced up to tied third when he finished, with a round of nine-under 62 at the Brunei Open.
We surely didn't see that coming. After having turned pro in 1997, Muniyappa has been a journeyman on the domestic circuit, securing his maiden title last year in his native city, at the Toyota Open, a 20-lakher played in Eagleton. Having made close to two lakhs in the first season of the PGTI, he shot up the merit list and took home a little over Rs 18 lakh in prize money last season. And after securing his full Asian Tour card at the Q-school earlier this year, Muniyappa was deemed ready to step it up on foreign soil
But before today, he had never made the cut in an Asian Tour event outside India and therefore to expect him to do something spectacular tomorrow would be hoping for a bit too much. But, that is exactly what we will be doing. This just sounds exciting, to be waking up on a Sunday morning, looking for great play from more than one Indian player.
In May this year, he was tied for the lead in the early stages of the DDA Open but the Delhi heat was too much to handle for him and he slipped away towards the end. The pressure will definitely be on him when he targets a high finish, possibly a win tomorrow. For the 32-year-old, who brings in each new year with the chorus of birthday wishes, tomorrow could mark a new dawn in his professional career.
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