Win for Chikkarangappa
BANGALORE’S Chikkarangappa S (right) took centre-stage last Friday (19) as he shot a solid final round score of four-under 68 to earn a come-from-behind win at the Gujarat Open Golf Championship.
The 27-year-old, a two-time winner on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) and an Asian Tour regular, ended the week with a total score of nine-under-279 to emerge triumphant by three shots and register his 13th win on the PGTI. It was his 14th career title.
Kolkata’’s Viraj Madappa fired the last day’s best score of sevenunder-65 to finish runner-up at six-under-282 at the Kalhaar Blues & Greens Golf Club.
Om Prakash Chouhan, the leader for the first three days who was ahead by a comfortable five-shot margin at the start of the final round, carded a disastrous sixover-78 which saw him drop to tied third in the final placings at five-under-283.
Delhi’s Sachin Baisoya (68) and Kolkata’s SSP Chawrasia (71) also took a share of third place along with Chouhan. Chawrasia was the only player with four sub-par rounds this week.
Chikkarangappa (69-72-70-68), who began the day six shots off the lead in third place, had a profitable front-nine as he scored birdies on the first, fourth and seventh thanks to his accurate approach shots and consistent putting which included a 15-feet conversion on the first.
He sank a 15-footer for birdie on the 13th, an important 12-footer for bogey on the 14th and landed his approach within a few inches of the pin for birdie on the 17th.
Chikka said: “My hitting had been consistent all week but I often found myself on the wrong side of the greens. Today, I missed five greens but was on the right side of the greens so found myself in better positions to make chipputts. I also hit my wedges really well.
“I think OP (Om Prakash Chouhan) played really well for most of the week but today he may have felt the pressure after I hit it close on the seventh.