KARACHI: Minhaj Maqsood Warraich continued to hold onto his two-stroke lead after the second round of the Rashid D. Habib Memorial Golf Tournament on Friday despite a stunning charge by defending champion Ahmed Baig.

Ahmed had started the day five shots off the lead but fired a four-under 68 to move three shots behind Minhaj and one adrift of second-placed Hamza Amin.

Both Minhaj and Hamza returned cards of 70, with Shabbir Iqbal tied for third at 141 with Ahmed while Matloob Ahmed is a shot further adrift after he matched Shabbir with a 71.

Minhaj played a steady round; firing five birdies but three bogeys meant he moved to six-under 138 overall. Hamza struck four birdies, only for a double-bogey on the 13th costing him the lead.

Ahmed, on the other hand, was sublime on the front nine as he went bogey-free and shot three birdies. Two more birdies followed on the back nine and it was enough to move him back into title contention.

Published in Dawn, January 31st, 2026