Atwal makes up with four-under 68 on second day

La Quinta (California): Indian golfer Arjun Atwal made up for his first day lapses with a fine four-under 68 that helped him move up to tied 60th on the leaderboard at the Humana Challenge here.

Atwal, who had a 70 in the first round, opened with a birdie on the first and followed it up with two more on seventh and ninth to turn in three-under.

Bogeys on 10th and 13th threatened to derail his challenge before birdies on the 14th, 16th and 17th ensured he was four-under for the day and six-under for two days.

Mark Wilson, who was eight-under through 11 holes, posted a career-best 10-under 62. He was incidentally playing with Harrison Frazar, who in the past has shot 59.

Wilson now shares the lead with Ben Crane (65) and David Toms (63) at 16-under 128 after 36 holes as low scores continued to dominate the tournament.

But the day`s best score was a 11-under 61 from Ryan Moore, who tied the course record at the Nicklaus course. The tournament is played on three courses, the Nicklaus Private, Palmer West and Palm Springs.

Chowrasia shoots one-under; moves up to 19th

George (South Africa): India`s lone representative at the Volvo Golf Champions, SSP Chowrasia, managed to hold on with a highly creditable one-under 72 in conditions that were at their worst at the Fancourt in South Africa.

He is now one-under 218 for three days and in tied 19th place up from overnight 27th.

Chowrasia`s 72 at the par-73 Fancourt Links included six birdies and five bogeys and was one of the few under-par scores on the day. His start was horrendous with three bogeys on the trot, but he grabbed birdied on sixth, seventh and ninth to turn in even par.

Bogeys on 10th and 12th again put him in a poor position, before birdies on 13th, 15th and 16th again saved the day for him.

The leader was Branden Grace, winner in Joburg last week, and he was one-under for the day with two holes left. At 10-under, Nicolas Colaserts (69) was second and Retief Goosen (70) and Charl Schwartzel (68) were tied third.

Masters Tournament winner Schwartzel defied the foul conditions to move into contention as he carded a five-under 68 that included a front nine of 32 with two birdies and an eagle.

Spaniard Pablo Martin failed to break 90 in the wind and rain as three others Colin Montgomerie (80), Kenneth Ferrie (80) and Thomas Levet (82) also had a rough time.

Open Champion Darren Clarke, however, bogeyed the first three holes but birdied three of the last four, finishing the day at even par to stay at four-under for the tournament.

Gangjee finishes second; Bhasin earns Asian Tour card

Hua Hin (Thailand): Rahil Gangjee shot a sensational nine-under 63 and zoomed from the brink at 36th place to tied second at the end of the Asian Tour Qualifying School Final Stage on Saturday.

Gangjee totalled 12-under 276 and ended in a four-way tie for second, two shots behind winner American David Lipsky (69) at 14-under. Tied with Gangjee were Dodge Kemmer (69) of the United States, Thailand`s Arnond Vongvanij (69) and Australia`s Adam Groom (68).

Gangjee, who came to the Tour School to ensure a back-up as he continues to play on the Nationwide Tour in United States, is now assured of good starts on the Asian Tour where he won as a Rookie in 2004.

Gangjee`s 63 in the final round, equalled the best of the week, also shot by Yosuke Tsukada of Japan in first round and by Swiss player, Martin Romminger in second round.

Other than Gangjee, Kunal Bhasin who was tied 14th after three rounds, also managed to get full playing rights with a final round of 72 that saw him finish at six-under in tied 16th place.

"It was one of those great days where everything fell into place. Each putt fell in perfectly. I was quite sure I would do well. I was getting better day by day. I knew if I shot under-par I would get my card. But a nine-under was a pleasant surprise," said Gangjee, whose round included an eagle and eight birdies against just one bogey.

As many as 14 other Indians failed to earn cards in the Q-School.

David Lipsky of the United States won the Qualifying School Final Stage to lead a strong cast of young guns into the new 2012 Asian Tour season.

Lipsky, who is half Korean, closed with a final round four-under-par 68 to win the all-important Final Stage presented by Sports Authority of Thailand by two shots.

Among the notable names who finished in the top-40 and ties to earn their Asian Tour card for 2012 include James Bryne of Scotland, last year`s Walker Cup star, former Asian Tour winner Artemio Murakami of the Philippines and Australian Adam Blyth at the Springfield Royal Country Club.

Lipsky enjoyed a successful college career at the Northwestern University in Chicago and credited his victory to words of encouragement received from world number one Luke Donald on the social networking site Twitter.

"Luke Donald and my coach sent me some good messages this week. That really encouraged me. It was just a Tweet from Luke telling me good luck. Nothing too serious but that always helps with the confidence when you have the world number one wishing you luck," said the 23-year-old, who was one shot off the lead before battling to a winning total 14-under-par 274.

Lipsky, who surprised even himself with his debut victory in Asia, said he hopes to follow in the footsteps of seven-time Asian Tour winner Charlie Wi, who encouraged him to ply his trade in the far East.

"Being on the Asian Tour exceeds my expectations. I grew up with Charlie Wi as my friend and he has been successful out here. He talked to me a little bit about it and my coach encouraged me to travel and play. That was really the deciding factors. I don’t have any regrets and it seems like it is going to be a great experience," added Lipsky.

Arnond, who is highly tipped to be the next star from Thailand, birdied the last hole from 20 feet for 69 to finish in tied second place.

"It was scary but it worked out. I finished at 12-under but left a few putts out there. Overall I played well. It would have been nice to win but second place is not bad. I`m not feeling anything right now and I`m just going to enjoy the moment," said Arnond, who grew up in Thailand before moving to Florida to play golf at the David Leadbetter Golf Academy.

A total of 42 players earned their Asian Tour cards for 2012 with the cut at three-under-par 285.