A rollercoaster second round on Thursday saw overnight leader Jayaram Shrestha extend his lead to three strokes in the Pilot Golfers NPGA Classic at the par-72 Gokarna Golf Club.

Shrestha, who shot four-under 68 in the first round, was on course to open up a massive lead after his flawless first nine card of five-under 31. He opened the second round with three consecutive birdies before earning more shots on par-4s sixth and ninth in a bogeyfree first half. Shrestha, however, lost his momentum on the back nine where he failed to produce a single birdie after dropping a shot on the 10th. His  lost more ground after shooting a double bogey on the par-4 14th to settle for three-over 39. His two-under 70 second round card was still good enough to extend the lead over Bhuwan Kumar Rokka by three strokes.

Rokka carded one-under 71 for a total of three-under 141 in the seventh event of the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2018-19. Rokka shot one-over 37 on the front nine with birdies on the third and fourth holes against bogeys on first, fifth and eighth. On his way back, he sank birdies on 11th and 12th holes for a two-under 34.

Amateur golfer Tanka Bahadur Tanka hold the overall third position at two-under 142 after matching his first round score of one-under 71 on Thursday. Karki shot one-over 37 on the front nine with birdie on the second against bogeys on eighth and ninth holes. On the back nine, Karki sank birdies on 11th and 16th holes for a two-under 34 card.

Dhana Thapa and Rajendra Shrestha Pradhan were tied for third among the pros with a total card of one-over 145. Thapa shot three-over 75 and Shrestha carded even-par 72. Rame Magar, who carded a 72, and Sanjay Lama, who shot a 74, were tied for fifth at two-over 146. Former No 1 Deepak Acharya was in seventh place at three-over 147 overall. Acharya shot one-over 37 on the front nine but improved with one-under 71 on the back nine a second round card of one-under 71. Shivaram Poudel (74) and Bikash Adhikari (75) were tied for the eighth at five-over 149. Amateur Tashi Tshiring was nine stroke adrift of runaway leader Tanka Karki at seven-over 151 after carding three-over 75 on Thursday.

In all, 24 professionals and six amateurs made the cut for the final round of the tournament that offers Rs 450,000 in total prize money. The champion will receive Rs 85,000, second place will get Rs 56,000 and third place will earn 37,000. Al the pros to make the cut are assured of their share of cash rewards. A total of 30 pros and eight amateurs played over the first two rounds. The final round will be played at par-68 Royal Nepal Golf Club on Friday.

Pilot golfers Capt Rabindra Purush Dhakal, Capt Deepak Thapaliya and Capt Vijay Pratap Singh initiated the tournament as a tribute to Capt Badri K Shrestha, the first Nepali pilot who lost his life while serving for the nation.