Shiv Kapur moves up to second at Dubai Festival

Dubai: Shiv Kapur took a very definite step towards sealing his European Tour berth for 2014 with a sizzling eagle finish that saw him card a six-under 66 in the second round and move to second place in the season-ending Dubai Festival City Challenge Tour Grand Final here today. Kapur’s 69-66 saw him get to nine-under at the event hosted by Al Badia Golf Club. Andrea Pavan is leading the field with identical 66s in first two rounds. He is 12-under and three shots clear of Kapur. [caption id=“attachment_1207123” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Shiv Kapur is trying to regain his European Tour card. AFP[/caption] Kapur, who finished second on his last start on the European Challenge event in Foshan City, China, is lying 19th on the Money List and needs to get into the top-15 to confirm his full status on European Tour for 2014. Kapur was also tied 16th at the CIMB Classic, an event jointly sanctioned by Asian and PGA Tours. Winner of the first European Challenge Tour event this year in Ahmedabad, Kapur lost his European Tour card for the first after playing on it for seven year. Yesterday, he opened with a round of 69 and was placed seventh. He improved that to second place with a superb 66. His started birdie-birdie then gave away both shots with bogeys on next two holes. A birdie on seventh saw him fight back. On the back nine, Kapur was in z zone of his own. He birdied 10th, 11th and 12th in a row and then closed the day with a stunning eagle on the 18th. Two of the top four eagled the closing hole. Tyrell Hatton (69-67) was lying third at eight-under and he shared the spot with Jose Philipe Lima (70-66). Pavan is the leader on European Challenge Tour Money List. He has already had two wins on the Challenge Tour this year. Kapur, meanwhile, is in need of a strong finish this week if he is to claim one of the 15 European Tour cards on offer at the end of the finale. Kapur is right on course for a return to The Race to Dubai next season after a six-under 66 moved him to outright second on nine under par. “I knew going into China and this week that I needed a good finish,” said the Indian, who won the 2013 Challenge Tour season opener in his home country. “The focus was on trying to win and if you try to win or contend that will take care of anything else. “I don’t think the goals will change for the weekend. I want to put myself in a position where I can have a chance to win and that’s all I want to do and we’ll look at the money list at the end of that.” PTI