Teenaged amateur gets slot
Dubai-based Indian teenaged amateur Rayhan Thomas will get his first taste of a major professional event in his homeland when he tees up at the Hero Indian Open next month.
The 17-year-old, the highest ranked Indian amateur in the world at 94, is one of the four amateurs who have been given a spot in the national Open.
Apart from Rayhan Thomas, the Indian Golf Union has given its other three spots to US-based Rigel Fernandes, Yuvraj Sandhu and Yashas Chandra, all of whom are 20.
The Indian Open will be held from March 9 to 12, with an enhanced prize purse of $ 1.75 million at the challenging Gary Player layout at the DLF Golf and Country Club near Gurgaon.
“It is a dream come true for me,” said Thomas, who recently teed up at the Dubai Desert Classic and made the cut whilst playing alongside some of the biggest names in the game. He played the first two rounds with Indian Open stalwarts, 2015 winner Anirban Lahiri, and 2016 champion S.S.P. Chawrasia. Both had high words of praise for the young Indian.
In 2016, Rayhan also won a professional tournament in West Asia on the Mena Tour, whilst playing as an amateur. He was top-10 in four other events which helped him break into the top 100 of the world amateur rankings.
Among the three others who have been given spots is Rigel Fernandes, who is based and is studying at the University of South Florida.
“I have always wanted to play this tournament and it is indeed something I am looking forward to it,” said Fernandes.
Both Thomas and Fernandes were part of the team that played at the 2016 Asian Amateur Championships in Incheon, Korea.
The other two are Yuvraj Sandhu, 20, and Yashas Chandra, 22.