Jammu, Oct 26 A late flourish by Delhi-based rookie golfer, Shaurya Bhattacharya on the final day earned him a dramatic come-from-behind victory and his maiden professional title at the INR 50 lakh J&K Open 2024 played at the Jammu Tawi Golf Course (JTGC) here on Saturday.
The 21-year-old Shaurya (67-69-73-69), playing his first season on the PGTI, showed great character to card the joint lowest score of the round, an error-free three-under 69, on a tough final day where almost every golfer struggled, to total 10-under 278 for the week and become the first rookie to win on the PGTI in five years.
Gurugram’s Kartik Sharma (71-68-67-74), the overnight leader by three shots and leader for most of the last round, crashed out of contention after bogeys on the last three holes that saw him post a 74 on Saturday. The left-handed Kartik totalled eight-under 280 for the tournament.
Mohammad Sanju (71) of Kolkata finished third at five-under 283.
Bhattacharya, who won two titles as an amateur and was ranked second in his category in India before turning pro earlier this year, pocketed a cheque worth INR 7,50,000 to rise 21 spots from 47th to 26th in the PGTI Rankings.
Bhattacharya, three strokes off the lead in tied second place at the start of the fourth round, fired in his tee shots and approach shots with great precision through the day. He kept in touch with the lead thanks to his 30-foot birdie conversion on the sixth and a clutch six-feet par putt on the eighth. A great approach shot on the 15th saw Shaurya make a four-foot birdie putt there.
There was a late twist with a two-shot swing in favour of Shaurya on the 16th that helped him draw level with Kartik at the top. Shaurya sank a 15-footer for birdie on the 16th while Kartik found the hazard on the same hole and as a result, dropped a bogey. Kartik’s challenge then faded away as he conceded two more bogeys on the last two holes after missing the green on the 17th and finding the hazard once again on the 18th.
After winning the title, Bhattacharya said, “I was very accurate with my hitting today and did well to stay within striking distance of the lead. When I was three shots back till the 15th hole, I was telling myself to go for birdies but did that without putting pressure on myself. I just told myself to stick to my game plan. The birdies on the 15th and 16th then gave me a lot of confidence.
“I felt I was too defensive over the past three days so today I told myself to be more aggressive. I therefore changed my strategy and hit driver on the 15th and 16th tees today instead of 3-iron which in turn set up birdies for me and brought me into the lead. I backed myself on those shots.
“This win gives me loads of confidence and now I know where my game stands. I would like to thank Jammu Tawi Golf Course for providing excellent playing conditions this week. I also thank J&K Tourism for supporting this event,” he added.
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