India's 21-year-old golfing sensation Gaganjeet Bhullar shot a four-under 67 to fire himself into title contention at the Barclays Singapore Open on Friday.

By Eugene YS Han from Sentosa

The youngster displayed nerves of steel and maturity to collect five birdies and just one bogey amidst tough weather conditions in the second round which was again disrupted by the weather. Bhullar was one of the 61 golfers who finished both their rounds.

When he was asked how he managed to keep focused, he said: "I think mental strength that is the only difference that separates you from other golfers."

"Today's second round was much better than the first round because I had one bogey that was the number four hole.

"Apart from that, I drove the ball well, I think I missed only two fairways, at ninth and fourth, and hit the ball really well."

The Kapurthala-born Indian, who is currently fifth on Asian Tour's Order of Merit, is now just three shots off club house leaders Ian Poulter, Daniel Chopra and Chan Yih-Shin.

It is a much improved display for Bhullar at the Sentosa Golf Club as he missed the cut in 2007 while in 2008, he was tied at 68. Based on current form, it's hard to see Bhullar not finishing in the top ten. When asked if he felt confident of being in contention to win the richest national Open in Asia at US$5 million, Bhullar replied: "Definitely, two more days to go, anything can happen."

In the first round, which stretched from Day One to Day Two, the youngster made par 71 but came back strongly in the second round with a four-under 67. In both rounds, he made five birdies but the difference in the second was he made only one bogey compared to the three bogeys and one double-bogey he suffered in the first round.

The day could have ended a little bit different for Bhullar as he approached the final hole on the ninth tee. His errant second shot had landed into the right-hand bunker. Many other players his age could have cracked and went on to bogey the hole but Bhullar held his nerve to wedge his way out of trouble and eventually saved par - to the delight of the gallery.

But when asked which his most important shot was today, it was a surprise that he immediately said it was at the par-three eighth hole where he collected a birdie. Bhullar hit a beautiful approach shot on the 196-metre hole that landed just ten centimetres from the cup.

He said: "I never expected to hit that close, and I used a three-iron for that shot. I am focused on hitting fairways as the rough is up especially this year."

Bhullar, who turned professional in 2006, was India's number one amateur in 2004 and 2006. He was also part of the India team that won silver at the 2006 Asian Games.  India veteran Jyoti Randhawa told ESPNSTAR.com on Thursday that he felt Bhullar has the potential to break into the world's top ten in the future.

"I'm learning a lot on this tour and I am working really hard to break into the top ten," smiled Bhullar when he heard about Jyoti's comments.

"I think this year I'm playing really well and every big tournament I'm playing in them.  I'm always learning something and next week is another big week because I got into the HSBC Champions."

When asked about why he is in such good form, Bhullar attributed his good showing to the confidence gained from winning a string of events starting with winning his first Asian Tour title - the Indonesian President Invitational - in July. It was followed by the Professional Golf Tour of India's Players Championship presented by Eagleton in August and the DLF Masters, also a PGTI Tour event, in September.

But none of these events can boast the world-class field on show at the Barclays Singapore Open this week. Nonetheless, Bhullar revealed that he is not intimidated playing against the likes of Phil Mickelson, Padraig Harrington and Ernie Els.

"I have age on my side. I know if not this year then I've got next year. I have nothing to lose."

He then quipped: "And I think nowadays golf is a young man's game!"

* ESPNSTAR.com's Ian Griffiths and Eugene YS Han will be at the Serapong Course in Sentosa during the course of the event. Catch the Barclays Singapore Open LIVE on STAR Sports on Saturday and Sunday starting at 1100 HKT (0830 IST).