Gurugram, Apr 6 (Golf News) The team of Aadil Bedi, Ankur Chadha and Hitaashee Bakshi was crowned winners of the inaugural Ballantine's Golf Championship – Mixed Pro Challenge at the DLF Golf and Country Club here on Wednesday.

Aadil, Ankur and Hitaashee's (131-138) team, leaders by two shots after round one, drove home the advantage with a score of six-under 138 in the second and final round to end up with a gross score of 19-under 269 for the week to lift the trophy.

They took home the winning cheque worth Rs. 7 lakh at the 36-hole tournament, a first-of-its-kind men's and women's mixed event played in India.

Seventeen-year-old Hitaashee, playing at her home course, was the best performer for her team for the second day in succession as she followed up her 66 in round one with a 69 in round two.

The team consisting of Yuvraj Singh Sandhu, Sunit Chowrasia and Gaurika Bishnoi (133-138) finished runners-up with a gross score of 17-under 271 after firing a six-under 138 in round two.

It was a Team Strokeplay event with 18 sides participating. The total prize purse was Rs. 30 lakh. All players were to hole out on every hole. The two best scores out of three on each hole (hole by hole) were counted towards the team score.

Hitaashee, who is in the middle of her 12th class board exams, mixed six birdies with a bogey and a double-bogey on the final day. Hitaashee, who has won three events on the WGAI since turning professional in December last year, made two early birdies, sinking a 12-footer on the third and tapping-in on the fifth.

It was Aadil Bedi who gave the early breakthroughs to the winning team as he scored a chip-in birdie on the first hole followed by two more birdies on the third and fourth. Aadil, a winner on the PGTI, then conceded five bogeys to end up with a 74 in round two.

Ankur Chadha, who posted a score of 69 on day one, signed for a 78 on day two. Besides Hitaashee's 66, Ankur's 69 in round one was also crucial to the team's solid start on Tuesday.

The team of Sunit Chowrasia (74), Gaurika Bishnoi (76) and Yuvraj Singh Sandhu (81) held on to their overnight second position.

Honey Baisoya, also playing at his home course, shot the day's best individual score of 68 that played a vital role in his team finishing tied third at 16-under 272. Honey's team-mates were Mani Ram and Jahanvi Bakshi who is Hitaashee’s elder sister.

The other team that finished tied third comprised Khalin Joshi, Kartik Sharma and Oviya Reddi. 

Also Read : Hitaashee, Ankur, Aadil’s team leads on day one of Golf Championship

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Gurugram, Apr 5 (Golf News) Hitaashee Bakshi, Ankur Chadha and Aadil Bedi fired a total of 13-under 131 to take the lead on day one of the Golf Championship –- Mixed Pro Challenge -- here on Tuesday.

The first round of the 36-hole tournament, a first-of-its-kind men’s and women’s mixed event being played in India, saw 17-year-old Hitaashee make a major contribution to her team total as she fired the day’s best score of six-under 66 at her home course.

The team comprising Yuvraj Singh Sandhu, Sunit Chowrasia and Gaurika Bishnoi were in second place with a gross score of 11-under 133.

Third place was occupied by the trio of Pranavi Urs, Karandeep Kochhar and Chiragh Kumar, who had a gross score of 10-under 134.

The tournament is a Team Strokeplay event where all players must hole out on every hole. The two best scores out of three on each hole (hole by hole) would count towards the team score.

Hitaashee, who is in the middle of her class 12th Board Exams, had a horrid start as she bogeyed the first two holes after pulling her approach shots on both occasions. She then began turning it around, picking up four birdies on the front-nine thereafter including three on the trot from the seventh through the ninth.

Hitaashee then added four more birdies to her card on the back-nine courtesy three conversions from a range of eight to 12 feet and a tap-in on the 17th. She also got out of trouble on the 12th with a good par-save.

Yuvraj and Sunit had the two best scores in their team as both shot rounds of 73 to help their team end the day in second place.

Mysuru-based 18-year-old Pranavi, one of only two players to shoot an error-free round on day one, was instrumental in her team being placed third. 

Also Read : Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri finishes 13th at Texas Open

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Kolkata, Mar 14 (Golf News) Indian golf legend Jeev Milkha Singh and four-time European Tour winner SSP Chawrasia will be among the top attractions at the TATA Steel PGTI Players Championship beginning here on Tuesday.

Jeev will be playing a professional event in Kolkata for the first time since 2016 when he tees off at the revered Tollygunge Club.

The fourth event of the 2022 TATA Steel PGTI season, which carries a prize purse of Rs. 50 lakh, consists of 132 players including 129 professionals and three amateurs.

It is a 72-hole stroke play event with the cut being applied after 36 holes.

The stellar field features some of the biggest names in Indian professional golf such as Rahil Gangjee, Olympian Udayan Mane, Rashid Khan, Khalin Joshi, Viraj Madappa, Ajeetesh Sandhu, Chikkarangappa and defending champion Karandeep Kochhar.

At the previous PGTI Players Championship held at Tollygunge Club in 2016, Karandeep Kochhar, while still an amateur, created history by becoming the youngest player to win on the PGTI at the age of 17 years and 163 days. As a result, he also became the first Indian amateur to win on the PGTI.

The foreign players competing are Sri Lankans Mithun Perera, Anura Rohana, N Thangaraja and Vijitha Bandara as well as Bangladeshis Md Zamal Hossain Mollah and Badal Hossain.

Besides Chawrasia, Gangjee and Madappa, the other prominent Kolkata-based professionals in the field are Shankar Das, Feroz Ali Mollah, Sunit Chowrasia, Divyanshu Bajaj and Mohammad Sanju.

The three Kolkata-based amateurs participating are Rohan Shroff, Samridh Sen and Rahul Batra. 

Also Read : Lahiri takes one-shot lead at weather-hit PLAYERS Championship

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Singapore, Jan 14 (Golf News) India's Khalin Joshi struggled with his putter and slipped to 2-over 74 on the second day but stayed two shots off the lead at the halfway stage of the Singapore International here on Friday.

Thailand's Rattanon Wannasrichan sensationally eagled the 626-yard par-five 18th to take the lead after the second round. With 73-66, he was five-under 139, two shots clear of Joshi and Ratchanon Chantananuwat (75-66), Thailand's 14-year-old amateur golf sensation.

The USD 1million tournament is the second from last event on the Asian Tour's 2020-21 season.

On another difficult day in strong winds on an exacting Tampines Course, eight of the 15 Indian who teed off at the event, made the 36-hole cut, which fell at 7-over.

Other Indians making the cut were S Chikkarangappa (75-70) and Ajeetesh Sandhu (70-75) at T-7; Shubhankar Sharma (73-75) and Viraj Madappa (77-71) at T-20; Shiv Kapur (79-72), Rashid Khan (75-76) and Abhijit Chadha (72-79) at T-54.

Indians missing the cut were M Dharma (81-73); Karandeep Kochhar (77-78), Veer Ahlawat (78-77); Sunit Chowrasia (77-79); Udayan Mane (74-83), Jeev Milkha Singh (78-80) and Jyoti Randhawa (79-79).

Joshi said: "It wasn't a good day on the greens for me. I struggled with the putter but overall, I am happy with the way I'm playing.

"Obviously, it was tough out there. It's not going to be easy. The winds were up. I felt like I should have capitalised more earlier in the day because it wasn't as windy as now. But overall, I'm in a good position and just looking forward to the next two days." S Chikkarangappa and Ajeetesh Sandhu battled to 70 and 75 and were in Top-10 of the leader board.

Shubhankar Sharma suffered a double bogey and two other bogeys against a lone birdie on 18th, while Viraj Madappa, who like Joshi and Sandhu is searching for his second Asian Tour win, had four birdies on the front nine and three bogeys on the back nine of the Tana Merah Course.

Rattanon took away the focus from Ratchanon with his brilliant finish.

"The 18th was playing downwind. My second shot was with a three wood, it was a low cut. I was just hoping for a good shot, and it finished 10 feet away. It was a little but lucky," said Rattanon, whose sole Asian Tour victory came in the 2018 Thailand Open.

Ratchanon, who is playing in his first professional event overseas, shot 75 yesterday and complained of feeling unwell but was thrilled to get himself back in contention today with a round that saw him hit all 14 fairways despite the wind.

Filipino Angelo Que and Paul Peterson from the United States returned rounds of 71 and 73 respectively to sit at one under for the tournament.

Thailand's Jazz Janewattananond, the reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit champion, finished in solo possession of sixth place on level par after a 73. 

Also Read :  Khalin Joshi leads Singapore International, Sandhu lies third.

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Singapore, Jan 13 (Golf News) Khalin Joshi, the last Indian golfer to win on the Asian Tour, made a strong bid for a second title as he overcame strong winds to claim the first-round lead with a five-under-par 67 at the Singapore International here on Thursday.

Joshi, who won the 2018 Panasonic Open for his maiden Asian Tour success, leads Englishman William Harrold (69) by two shots in the USD 1 million event at the Tan Merah course.

It could have been a one-two for India as Ajeetesh Sandhu was 4-under through 13 holes but dropped shots on 14th and 16th before picking a birdie on 18th.

He was 2-under 70 and placed tied-third alongside American Paul Peterson, while Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond and Pavit Tangkamoprasert, Chan Shih-chang from Chinese-Taipei and South African Mathiam Keyser returned 71.

Another Indian in Top-10 was Abhijit Chadha (72) at T-9, while Shubhankar Sharma shot 73 and was T-20.

Olympian Udayan Mane (74) was T-31, while Rashid Khan and S Chikkarangappa with 75 each were T-45.

Sunit Chowrasia, Karandeep Kochhar and Viraj Madappa carded 77 each.

With scores of 78 each, youngster Veer Ahlawat and veteran Jeev Singh, a winner in Singapore back in 2006, were T-79, while Jyoti Randhawa and Shiv Kapur with 79 were T-86.

Joshi, who started on the tenth, had seven birdies on a demanding golf course where wind speeds reached as much as 35km per hour.

He was five-under through 10 holes with birdies on 12th, 15th, 17th and 18th. He added one more on first but dropped shots on second and fourth before picking two more birdies on fifth and eighth.

“It was obviously a very challenging golf course to start off with; it’s long, it’s windy and the flags were all tough, so it wasn’t very easy, greens are firm,” Joshi said.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been leading on the Asian Tour. It’s obviously feeling very good. But it’s a four-day tournament, so you know, there's still a long way to go. Obviously, it’s a challenging golf course, everybody is going to make mistakes. "The key is to stay patient and whenever you have chances to make birdies, just capitalise. Just enjoy it, because it’s going to be a long week for sure.” Australian Wade Ormsby, the current leader of the Asian Tour Order of Merit, was in a large group of players who fired 72.

Journeyman tour pro Harrold ̶ who played on the EuroPro Tour last year ̶ made an eagle, four birdies and three bogeys to take the clubhouse lead in the morning session.

Reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit champion Jazz, coming off a five-week break, was content with his round after birdieing his final two holes. 

Also Read : TATA Steel PGTI Qualifying School 2022 begins on January 7

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Jamshedpur, Dec 19 (Golf News) Olympian Udayan Mane held his nerve and carded a three-under 69 in the last round to win the PGTI's season-ending TATA Steel Tour Championship by a narrow one-shot margin here on Sunday.

The win also helped him bag the PGTI Order of Merit title for the 2020-21 season.

Mane (68-66-67-69) made six birdies, a bogey and a double-bogey on the final day to end up with a tournament tally of 18-under 270 at the season's showpiece event worth Rs. 1.5 crore in prize money which was played across the Beldih and Golmuri Golf Courses.

The six-foot four-inch tall Pune-based golfer, who made a 12-feet pressure putt for victory on the last hole, made it a year to remember as he followed up his Tokyo Olympics appearance with the bragging rights of being No. 1 in PGTI's money list with season's earnings of Rs. 58,72,275.

Two-time Asian Tour winner Rashid Khan (70-72-66-63) matched the tournament's lowest round of nine-under 63 on the last day to climb 10 spots and finish runner-up at 17-under 271.

Rashid, who made an eagle and seven birdies in round four, gave himself an opportunity to have a shot at the title and was even staring at a record fourth PGTI Order of Merit crown as his playoff with Mane was looking possible at one stage.

Mane, the overnight joint leader along with Shubhankar Sharma, seized the early initiative with birdies on the second, third and fourth, making two-putts on the two par-5s on that stretch. He made double-bogey on the eighth but soon recovered with birdies on the 11th and 13th where he sank 10-feet putts.

Mane emerged the outright favourite after his terrific up and down birdie from the bunker on the 16th gave him a two-shot cushion at the top.

A bogey on the 17th and an erratic drive on the 18th gave him some anxious moments as clubhouse leader Rashid was just one shot behind at that stage.

However, Mane produced a good approach shot and an ice-cool 12-feet par conversion on the 18th to seal his 12th title on the PGTI.

Mane, who collected the winner's purse worth Rs. 22,50,000, thus zoomed from third to first position in the PGTI Order of Merit as he leapfrogged Karandeep Kochhar and Chikkarangappa in the merit list based on season's earnings.

Mane won an impressive four titles during the 2020-21 season and posted four other top-10s as well.

"I just like the courses here in Jamshedpur. That's the reason I've won here twice. It's a good test for the professionals to adapt from one course to another in the middle of the round.

"Winning the PGTI Order of Merit title is great for my confidence as I will head to the Asian Tour soon. I'd now like to carry this form to Asia," added Mane, who now wins a four-year exemption on the PGTI as a result of emerging Order of Merit champion.

Rashid, lying tied 30th after his first two rounds of 70 and 72, made a brilliant rearguard action with scores of 66 and 63 in the last two rounds to make a strong comeback in the tournament.

He added three more birdies on the back-nine during his flawless final round. As a result of his runner-up finish, Rashid jumped from ninth to fourth place in the PGTI's final money list.

Two-time European Tour winner Shubhankar shot a final round of 72 to take tied fourth place at 15-under 273 along with four-time European Tour winner SSP Chawrasia (70).

Shubhankar's challenge faded away on the back-nine where he conceded three bogeys and a double-bogey in exchange for two birdies.

SSP's nephew Sunit Chowrasia (69) finished tied sixth at 14-under 274 along with nine-time Asian Tour winner Gaganjeet Bhullar (71).

Karandeep Kochhar, a winner of two events this season, finished tied 23rd at six-under 282 at the season finale. He took second place in the PGTI's money list with season's earnings of Rs. 51,00,880.

Chikkarangappa claimed tied 12th place with a total of 10-under 278. A two-time winner in the season, he thus finished third in the Order of Merit with season’s earnings of Rs. 48,07,880.

Indian golf legend Jyoti Randhawa finished tied 44th at one-under 287.

Kartik Sharma of Gurugram won the PGTI Emerging Player of the Year title with season's earnings of Rs. 18,22,750, the highest among the rookies. 

Also Read : Shubhankar's stunning 63 takes him into joint lead, Udayan too rises

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Pune, Dec 4 (Golf news) Chandigarh's Abhijit Singh Chadha cruised to a comfortable six-shot win at the Pune Open Golf Championship after shooting a solid last round of four-under 66, his third consecutive bogey-free round, here on Saturday.

The 30-year-old Chadha (63-65-64-66), leading by one shot at the end of round three, sank four birdies on Saturday, to end up with an impressive winning total of 21-under 258.

Chadha negotiated the tough conditions to perfection through the week as he went error-free for 71 holes after his bogey on the first hole in round one.

He thus lifted his third title which also accounted for his first win in six years. He took home a prize money cheque worth Rs. 6,46,600 to move up nine spots to 15th place in the PGTI Order of Merit.

Rookie Kartik Sharma (66-60-67-71) of Gurugram, who was placed second, one shot off the lead, after round three, returned a one-over 71 on the final day to finish second at 15-under 264.

Kartik's round featured a birdie and two bogeys as the putts didn't roll in for him. Nonetheless, it was a career-best finish for the left-hander who moved up seven spots to 18th place in PGTI's merit list. It was also Kartik’s fifth top-10 this season.

Kolkata's Sunit Chowrasia shot the day’s best score for the second day in succession to finish third at 13-under 266.

In round four, Chowrasia’s 65 was matched by Chandigarh's Yuvraj Singh Sandhu (tied eighth at seven-under 272), Bengaluru’s C Muniyappa (tied 17th at three-under 276) and Gurugram’s Ankur Chadha (tied 26th at two-over 281).

The par for the course was 70 during round four. Play commenced on time on Saturday. The day witnessed a light drizzle in the afternoon towards the closing stages of the tournament.

Chadha, a silver medallist from the 2010 Asian Games, dominated the proceedings from the outset in round four as he began pulling away from the rest of the field early on.
After nearest the challenger Kartik missed the green and the subsequent chip-putts to drop bogeys on the second and third, Chadha further capitalized with 10-feet birdie conversions on the fifth and sixth to stretch his lead to a massive five shots.

Thereafter, Kartik could not convert his opportunities on the greens and Chadha maintained his lead before further extending it with birdies on the 16th and 17th making a mammoth 66-feet putt on the latter.

Chadha finally emerged triumphant by six shots after Sharma picked up a birdie on the 18th hole.

Bengaluru's Syed Saqib Ahmed (69) took fourth place at nine-under 270.

Among the Pune golfers, amateur Rohan Dhole Patil (75-67-68-70) had the best finish as he secured tied 24th place at one-over 280. Rohan also took the trophy for the best performing amateur.

Delhi-based amateur Krishnav Nikhil Chopraa, son of former cricketer Nikhil Chopra, struck a hole-in-one on the 16th hole during his final round of 67. He claimed tied 26th place at two-over 281.

Also Read : Shiv Kapur rises to T-24, Veer drops to 20th in Phuket on Asian Tour

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Pune, Dec 3 (Golf news) Chandigarh's Abhijit Singh Chadha fired a six-under 64 to take a one-shot lead over Gurugram-based rookie Kartik Sharma after round three of the Pune Open Golf Championship, which has now turned into a two-horse race, here.

The rest of the field were another eight shots behind.

The 30-year-old Chadha (63-65-64), lying overnight second and two shots off the lead, produced his second successive bogey-free round on Friday to take his tournament tally to 17-under 192 at the Poona Club Golf Course.

The 21-year-old Sharma (66-60-67), the overnight leader, on the other hand, carded a three-under 67 on day three to drop to second place at 16-under 193. The left-hander's round featured five birdies and two bogeys.

A shootout between Chadha and Kartik, lying 24th and 25th in the PGTI Order of Merit respectively, is now in the offing on the final day as the duo is miles ahead of the rest of the field.

Kolkata's Sunit Chowrasia shot the day's best score of seven-under 63 that propelled him 11 spots to tied third at eight-under 201 along with Bangladesh's Md Zamal Hossain Mollah (68) and Bengaluru's Syed Saqib Ahmed (68).

Hole no. 5 which had been reduced from a Par-4 to a Par-3 due to the wet conditions during round two, was once again played as a Par-4 in round three as the course dried up on Friday. The par for the course was therefore reverted from 69 to the original 70 during round three.

Chadha, a two-time winner on the PGTI, said, "I kept myself in play throughout and was happy to not drop a shot once again. Besides the birdies I made two great par saves from 15 feet on the fifth and the 17th, both coming at crucial moments." "I brought my experience into play when the conditions suddenly changed with the heavy rain on the last hole. I didn't let it affect me mentally. I planned the last hole like a three-shot hole and made birdie there." Sharma, searching for his first title, will be looking to emulate Chadha, who incidentally won the first of his two titles during his rookie season on the PGTI in 2012.

Among the Pune golfers, amateur Rohan Dhole Patil (75-67-68) was the highest-placed at tied 25th at a total of one-over 210.

Fourteen-year-old Australian amateur of Indian origin Aarav D Shah (69-70-71) was also in tied 25th place.

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Kolkata, Nov 27 (Golf news) Delhi's Kshitij Naveed Kaul produced a dogged two-under 70 to carry a slender one-shot lead into the final round of the ICC RCGC Open Golf Championship here on Saturday.

Angad Cheema and Ankur Chadha were a close second and third respectively after the third round of the tournament.

However, there was daylight between the top three and the rest of the field at the Rs. 40 lakh event being played at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club (RCGC) here.

The 20-year-old Kshitij, the halfway leader by two shots, managed to keep his nose ahead in round three as he fired three birdies and a bogey that took his total to 12-under 204.

Panchkula's Angad (68-68-69), lying overnight second, narrowed the gap between himself and the leader to just one shot after his round of 69 that featured four birdies and a bogey.

Gurugram's Ankur (68-69-69), who was third at the halfway stage, too carded a 69 punctuated by five birdies and two bogeys, to keep himself in the fray.

While Kshitij and Angad are in search of their second title, Ankur will look to take a shot at his maiden title.

Sunit Chowrasia (71) was the highest-placed Kolkata golfer in tied fourth at six-under 210. Last week's winner Yuvraj Singh Sandhu (72) of Chandigarh joined Sunit in tied fourth position.

Greater Noida-based Arjun Sharma returned the day's best card of 67 to be placed 15th at two-under 214.

Defending champion Mithun Perera (73-73-74) of Sri Lanka was tied 32nd at four-over 220.

Also Read : Kshitij Naveed Kaul climbs to top with sublime 65

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Kolkata, Nov 26 (Golf News) Delhi's Kshitij Naveed Kaul climbed to the top with a sublime seven-under 65 in round two of the ICC RCGC Open Golf Championship here on Friday.

The 20-year-old Kshitij (69-65), a winner on the PGTI in 2019, struck the tournament's best round so far featuring nine birdies and two bogeys to take his 36-hole tally to 10-under 134 for a two-shot lead. Kaul made a gain of five spots from his overnight tied sixth.

Panchkula-based Angad Cheema (68-68), part of the five-way lead on day one, shot a second consecutive 68 to occupy second place at eight-under 136.

Gurugram's Ankur Chadha (68-69), also a joint leader in round one, ended day two in third place at seven-under 137 following his 69 on Friday.

The cut came down at three-over 147. Fifty-three professionals made the cut.

Kshitij Naveed Kaul, currently 19th on the PGTI Order of Merit and fresh from top-20s in his last three events, had birdies at regular intervals on the front-nine picking up shots on the second, fourth, seventh and ninth as a result of conversions from a range of seven to 15 feet.

Kaul then slowed down after a couple of erratic tee shots resulted in bogeys for him on the 10th and 11th. Kshitij then came roaring back with a birdie on the 12th followed by four in succession from the 15th to the 18th. He narrowly missed eagles on the 15th and 17th with his approach from 160 yards landing within inches of the pin on the latter.

The promising young talent signed off in style with a 20-feet birdie conversion on the 18th.

Angad Cheema began the day with two birdies but then made pars and dropped a bogey to be one-under for the day through 13 holes. He then pushed ahead with three birdies between the 14th and the 17th.

Ankur Chadha mixed four birdies with a bogey during his 69 which featured two conversions from a range of 12 to 20 feet.

Chandigarh's Yuvraj Singh Sandhu, Ahmedabad’s Anshul Patel, Delhi's Chiragh Kumar and Om Prakash Chouhan of Mhow were in tied fourth at six-under 138.

Sunit Chowrasia was the highest-placed Kolkata golfer in tied eighth at five-under 139. His second round 68 included four successive birdies on the front-nine.

Mari Muthu of Bengaluru, one of the five joint leaders from round one, dropped to tied eighth after a 71 on Friday.

Defending champion Mithun Perera (73-73) of Sri Lanka was tied 33rd at two-over 146. 

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Kolkata, Nov 23 (Golf news) Defending champion and Sri Lankan ace Mithun Perera will be the top draw in the second edition of the 'ICC RCGC Open Golf Championship Powered by Urbana' beginning here from Thursday.

The tournament will see top Indian professionals in the PGTI Order of Merit like Manu Gandas, Yuvraj Singh Sandhu, Om Prakash Chouhan, Akshay Sharma, Amardeep Malik, M Dharma and Kshitij Naveed Kaul, as well as the experienced Shamim Khan and Mukesh Kumar, among others.

Other international players in the fray are Sri Lankans Anura Rohana, N Thangaraja and K Prabagaran, Bangladeshis Mohammad Zamal Hossain Mollah, Badal Hossain, Mohammad Sayum, Mohammad Dulal Hossain and Mohammad Akbar Hossain.

Kolkata-based professionals such as former PGTI Order of Merit champion Shankar Das, former Indian Open champion Feroz Ali Mollah and other leading players such as Sunit Chowrasia, Divyanshu Bajaj and Mohammad Sanju will be local challengers.

"We look forward to this event growing into one of the biggest attractions in Kolkata, one of India's leading golfing centres, in the future," PGTI CEO Uttam Singh Mundy said.

"We're excited about returning to the RCGC, one of the top championship venues in the country, after a gap of two years." Cricket legend Kapil Dev, who was included into PGTI as a board member, will also attend the meet and interact with the participants during his brief one-day visit on Friday.

Also Read : Kapur, Sandhu and Chawrasia gear up for Phuket Championship

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Jaipur, Oct 15 (Golf news) Khalin Joshi's final round of three-under 67 was good enough for him to turn the tables on overnight leader M Dharma and emerge victorious at the Rs 40 lakh Jaipur Open golf tournament presented by Rajasthan Tourism, here on Friday.

Joshi (61-66-64-67), who made a dramatic three-putt from four feet on the last hole to end the tournament with a bogey, won by one shot as he totalled 22-under 258 for the week.

Khalin's fifth career trophy ended his three-year long title drought.

The 29-year-old Joshi, who hails from the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) course, overcame the disappointment of his runner-up finish in Delhi last week as he bagged a winning cheque worth Rs. 6,46,600 to move up from fifth to third in the PGTI Order of Merit.

He made six birdies and three bogeys on the last day.

"I was not comfortable with my irons today, especially on the approach shots. However, I drove and putted really well. So I said to myself to keep hitting as many fairways and greens as possible and the putter will do the rest of the job," Joshi said.

"The key for me today was making some up and downs and clutch par putts. This win will help me raise my game even more in the future events." Dharma (62-62-65-70), the overnight leader by two shots, slipped to second place with an even-par 70 on the last day as he struggled to hole putts. He ended the week with a total of 21-under 259.

Sunit Chowrasia (64) of Kolkata and Harendra Gupta (65) of Chandigarh took tied third place at 20-under 260. Chowrasia's round featured seven birdies and a bogey while Gupta had an eagle, four birdies and a bogey.

Chandigarh's Yuvraj Singh Sandhu produced the best round of the tournament, a 10-under 60, to claim the tied seventh place at 18-under 262. Yuvraj sank an eagle on the 18th from five feet and also made nine birdies and a bogey during his round.

Olympian Udayan Mane (64) was tied ninth at 17-under 263.

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Jaipur, Oct 14 (Golf news) Bengaluru's M Dharma held on to the lead on the third day of the Jaipur Open golf tournament, carding a five-under 65 here on Thursday.

The two-time PGTI winner (62-62-65), who was the overnight leader by three shots, ended day three with a two-shot lead, moving his total to 21-under 189.

His good friend and regular practice partner, Khalin Joshi (61-66-64) moved from overnight tied second to sole second at 19-under 191 following his 64 in round three.

Dharma and Khalin, both belonging to the same course, the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA), have stamped their authority here this week as both have been placed inside the top-3 on the first three days of the event.

Veer Ahlawat (67) and Harendra Gupta (67) are currently placed third at 16-under 194 and fourth at 15-under 195 respectively.

Dharma, looking for his first title in four years, missed a few short birdie putts early on and then dropped a bogey on the fourth after finding the bunker.

He finally got into his stride with a great tee shot on the sixth that left him a four-feet birdie conversion.

Thereafter, Dharma added five more birdies.

"After a poor start, it was the excellent tee shot on the fourth that got me back in my rhythm. I enjoy playing at the RGC as it is a shorter course and thus suits my game since my wedge-play is very strong," Dharma said.

Joshi, searching for his first win in three years, went bogey-free for the first time this week.

His six birdies were complemented by two outstanding par-saves from a distance of 12 to 20 feet on the eighth and 16th.

Sunit Chowrasia shot the day’s best score of 63 to be placed tied fifth at 14-under 196 along with PGTI Order of Merit leader Karandeep Kochhar (67) and last week’s winner Viraj Madappa (68).

Olympian Udayan Mane (68) was tied 12th at 11-under 199.

Hemendra Choudhary (66-70-68), playing at his home course, was tied 31st at six-under 204.

Also Read : Dharma dominates round 2 with second straight 62, opens 3-shot lead

News Source : PTI