LAHORE: Hamza Amin of Islamabad Golf Club produced a stellar performance on Friday, finishing the 18-hole round with an impressive four-under-par score of 68 in the 43rd Punjab Golf Championship here at the Royal Palm Golf Club. Hamza emerged as the leader in a field of 102 professional golfers, surpassing notable contenders such as Shabbir Iqbal, Matloob Ahmed, Mohammad Alam, and Mohammad Munir. His powerful hitting and sharp skills helped him earn multiple birdies, placing him atop the leaderboard. Though Hamza sits alone in the lead, his position is under threat from Tahir Bashir of Defence Raya Golf Club, who is just one stroke behind with a score of 69. The competition is tightly packed, with seven players grouped at a score of 71, just three strokes behind the leader. Among them are Minhaj Maqsood as well as Mohammad Shabbir alongside Talat Ijaz, Mohammad Saqib, Anser Mehmood, M. Zubair, and Mohammad Munir. The race remains fiercely competitive, with 11 more players following just one stroke behind at par 72. Six of these competitors are from Lahore Gymkhana; Asif Ali, Akber Mehroze, Aasher Masih, Latif Rafiq, Suleman Akhter, and M. Imran. The other five players at this score include Ghazanfar Mehmood, Talib Hussain, Ashiq Hussain, M. Alam, and M. Shahzad. In the amateur section, Mohammad Abid of Royal Palm leads the way with a score of 72. Close behind him are Muhammad Arsalan, Qasim Ali Khan of Gymkhana, and Shamir Majid of Defence Raya, all with scores of 74. Shahid Abbas of Royal Palm follows with a score of 75, while Nauman Ilyas of Garrison rounds out the top players with a score of 76.­