Kolkata, Oct 31 Aman Raj survived another close call before picking his second straight win as he clinched the IGPL Invitational Kolkata at the legacy-laden Par-70 Tollygunge Golf Club. Aman Raj (68) finished at 14-under for three days, while Veer Ganapathy, who was 4-under through 17 before the closing double bogey, also ended with a 2-under 66 and an 11-under total.
Though the margin was three shots, both players were level with one hole to go. Aman birdied the closing hole, while Veer double-bogeyed after going left and then hitting a tree with his second shot.
For the second time in as many weeks, the experienced Aman Raj held off a teenage challenger. If it was the 17-year-old Veer Ganapathy in Kolkata on Friday, a week earlier, it was the 16-year-old Kartik Singh in Jaipur.
Aman Raj’s two wins made him the second player to grab multiple wins, and like Gaganjeet Bhullar, he has back-to-back success. It also saw Aman Raj move to the top of the IGPL Order of Merit. He also became the first IGPL player to cross Rs 50 lakh in earnings in a mere five events.
Aryan Roopa Anand, a two-time All India Amateur champion, produced his best result of the IGPL Tour as he shot 4-under 66 and finished sole third at 9-under. His earlier two rounds were 68-66.
Also registering his best in the IGPL season was Samarth Dwivedi (67), who over three days carded 67-69-67 for a 7-under total and fourth place. Syed Saqib Ahmed (66-69-69) was tied fifth with veteran Ranjit Singh (69-67-68) at 6-under 204.
The top women finisher of the week was Ridhima Dilawari (69-70-71) at even par for the week, and she was tied 20th alongside the likes of established men's stars Chiragh Kumar (67-71-72), an Asian Tour winner, and Olympian Udayan Mane (66-74-70).
The top amateurs were Rahul Ravi (70-68-73) and Aryav Shah (67-71-73) at 1-over and tied-25th.
Aman Raj, when asked if he had ever thought of such a great start including back-to-back wins in the first five starts on the IGPL season, Aman laughed and said, “At the start of the year, I did think it would be a good year, but then the game was not going the way I wanted, but I kept telling myself it was just a matter of time. I had to keep telling myself that it is not easy in different situations.”
“But after the IGPL started, I had a surge of confidence. I had taken a big call, and I saw I was able to score and put myself in the position to win. I did not win but had top-10 finishes. I told myself I should go out there and not worry about what's happening, but again, it is not easy.
“After the first few weeks, I was still under stress. I was playing decent golf, but I was still not able to match the scores I thought I should score. So I tried to stay patient, and I didn't see the 9-unders coming like this,” shared Aman Raj
Aman Raj had two 9-under 61s in Jaipur and one in Kolkata.
“Now I am looking at the USD 500,000 Asian Tour event in Kensville, which is co-sanctioned with IGPL. That’s a pathway for me, and then the top four from the IGPL rankings get into the International Series event in India and also into an event where there will be a spot for the Open (the last Major of each year). So a lot to look forward to.” Added Aman Raj
Aman started the day at 12-under from the tenth tee. He picked birdies on the 13th and the 15th. Veer, playing alongside him, had a birdie start and then gave it back on the 11th. He got back two birdies on the 13th and the 15th to reduce the gap between him and Aman to three.
On the back nine, when Aman bogeyed the fourth, his 13th hole, Veer birdied the same for a two-shot swing, and the gap was just one. Veer picked a crucial birdie on the 16th, and Aman parred, so both were now level. Both parred the eighth, their 17th hole, and things looked set for a dramatic finish as they teed off from the ninth tee, their final hole.
Aman found the fairway, but Veer went left and then hit a branch with his second shot and finally ended with a double bogey.
Aman was on the green in two and had a birdie putt ahead of him. As Veer erred, Aman birdied the final hole and won by three shots, but Veer had fought well. He came off the green with a smile and was greeted by his father, Rahul Ganapathy, who hugged him warmly.
The three-shot swing meant a big margin of victory, but it was much closer than that.
Aman Raj’s experience and calm demeanour had once again won the day just as it had a week earlier. “In Jaipur, Kartik played very well till almost the finish, and here in Tolly, it was Veer. I am happy to have won both times, but I am also happy to see young stars like these produce such good golf,” said a gracious Aman, who then asked Veer to pose with him and the lovely IGPL Kolkata Trophy.
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