Arin Ahuja (second from left) receives his trophy from Kensville GCC MD Sameer Sinha (second from right). Also in the picture are Kensville GM Lokinder Malik (far right) and Prabhash Thakur, Tour Director, Championships. Image courtesy DP World PGTI.
Amateur Arin Ahuja tops DPW PGTI Q School as 48 earn 2027 status
By Rahul Banerji
Amateur Arin Ahuja topped the DP World PGTI Qualifying School 2026-27 by one shot at the Kensville Golf & Country Club in Ahmedabad on Friday.
The 22-two-year-old from Noida returned a gritty even par 72 to go with earlier scores of 70, 73 and 70 for a 3 under total of 285 on his first appearance at Q School.
Vedant Sirohi (71-71-73-71) and Bangladesh’s Md Siddikur Rahman (69-73-71-73) finished joint runners-up o2 2 under 286.
The cut in the final round fell at 15-over 203 with the top 48 players earning their full cards for the 2026-27 DP World PGTI season.
The 48 included four amateurs, four from Bangladesh and one Sri Lankan, the DP World PGTI said.
Ahuja, a winner of one title at the junior level and ranked India no. 2 on the amateur circuit in 2024, fought back strongly after early setbacks in round four.
Tied for second one shot off the lead overnight, Ahuja struggled with his irons early on day four, missing a few greens and dropping three bogeys on the first five holes.
The son of an Army officer, Arin kept himself in the hunt, with some crucial par saves from 10 to 15 feet on the seventh and eighth as his putting began to click.
Good work
He then came up with an outstanding approach shot and a 12-foot conversion to pick up an eagle on the 14th that got him back in the contest.
With momentum on his side, Ahuja rolled in two more long birdie putts on 15 and 17 for the lead. Despite a bogey on 18, he had done enough to emerge champion by one shot.
Excited at the prospect of playing his first season as a professional on the full tour, Ahuja said,“It’s been a solid week for me. I thank my coach Rahul Bajaj for his guidance.
“I made a poor start today but I’m proud of the way I kept my cool and fought back towards the end. After the eagle on 14, I knew I had a good chance to win. Putting was the key to my success this week.
“My strength has always been hitting it straight and keeping it in play. I did that well this week too.
“I’ve had some consistent performances as an amateur over the past three years, which led to my decision to take a shot at the DP World PGTI Qualifying School.
“This win is a big morale-booster for me and I now plan to turn professional very soon.”
The 2026-27 season begins with the IndianOil Servo Masters from November 17 to 20 in Digboi, Assam.
Also read: Indian golf’s Gen Next hope to make a mark on DPWIC debut
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