PGTI NEXGEN: Kumar registers maiden victory with final round 65 on home turf  

Lucknow, Sep 11 Lucknow’s Sanjeev Kumar registered his maiden victory after shooting a terrific five-under 65 at his home course, the Lucknow Golf Club, in the third and final round of the PGTI NEXGEN’s seventh event of the season.

The 33-year-old Sanjeev Kumar (68-70-65), who was three shots off the lead in second place after round two, totalled seven-under 203 for the week to record a two-shot triumph. Sanjeev’s spectacular come-from-behind victory resulted in him bagging the winning cheque worth Rs 2,54,300 that saw him rise from third to first position in the 2025 PGTI NEXGEN Order of Merit as his season’s earnings moved to Rs 7,08,740.

Chandimandir-based Umed Kumar (67-68-70), the overnight leader by three shots, carded an even-par 70 on day three to drop one spot and finish runner-up at a total of five-under 205. Umed’s second-place finish helped him climb from eighth to second position in the PGTI NEXGEN merit list.

The winner of this year’s NEXGEN Order of Merit will earn an exemption on the main tour (PGTI) for the 2026 season. The NEXGEN takes a break now, with the next event scheduled in Bhubaneswar in the first week of November.

The Lucknow Golf Club is a par-70 nine-hole course where the nine holes are played twice to comprise a round. On a number of holes, there are different tees used and there are different hole locations for the front-nine and back-nine.

Sanjeev Kumar used all his local knowledge to his advantage in the last round as he produced the day’s best effort, a bogey-free 65. Sanjeev’s hot putter also did the trick as he sank four birdies from a range of 10 to 20 feet between the first and the 11th hole. Sanjeev drained his fifth birdie of the day on the 12th hole. He then made pars till the end to prevail over nearest rival Umed Kumar by two shots.

Sanjeev, a professional since 2011 who had posted several runners-up finishes on the PGTI previously, said, “I played my best golf of the week today. My hitting and putting were outstanding. Importantly, I treated the final round like any other round that I play at my home course during the off-season. Playing on my home turf I had the advantage of knowing where to land my shots.

“I’ve waited a long time for my first title. I had come close to winning on several occasions in the past. Winning in front of my family and friends on my home ground was really special. I would like to thank the Lucknow Golf Club and its members for all their support. I now have my sights set on ending the season as No. 1 in the NEXGEN rankings that will earn me a spot on the main tour next year.”

Umed Kumar, who was the firm favourite going into the final round as a result of his three-shot overnight lead, suffered major setbacks when he dropped a triple-bogey on the ninth and a double-bogey on the 11th. Umed could not recover from this double blow despite picking up five birdies on the back nine as Sanjeev made steady progress on the leaderboard.

Gurugram’s Kushal Singh (70) took third place at a total of one-over 211.

Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor