Shaurya Bhattacharya (third from left) receives his winner’s cheque from Poona Club President Gaurav Gadhoke and past club captain and golf advisor Ikram Khan (second from left). Also seen are PGTI tournament director Sampath Chari (far left), club VP Indraneel Mujgule (third from right), club golf course lady captain Padmaja Shirke and club captain Jay Shirke. Image courtesy PGTI.
By Rahul Banerji
Shaurya Bhattacharya saved his best for the last to upstage tournament favourite Yuvraj Sandhu in a playoff at The Poona Club Open on Friday.
The tenacious Bhattacharya, who trailed by two shots after round three and by five midway through Friday, birdied the first playoff hole to win the Rs 1 crore event, the PGTI said.
A flawless 7 under par 64 saw Bhattacharya draw level on the final regulation hole which he birdied against a bogey from Sandhu for a two-shot swing that set up the playoff
The Delhi-based player and Sandhu totalled 21 under 263 before the decisive birdie handed Bhattacharya (69-63-67-64) his second win of the season and a third PGTI title overall.
Solid boost
It earned him Rs 15 lakh and consolidated his fourth place on the PGTI Order of Merit with season earnings of Rs 83,02,392.
Sandhu (65-67-65-66) earned Rs 10 lakh to extend his lead in the Order of Merit over closest rival Arjun Prasad with his haul closing in on the Rs.1 crore mark (Rs 98,67,200).
Previous merit topper Veer Ahlawat and Shivendra Singh Sisodia tied for a distant third place on 12 under 272.
The Poona Club Open was supported by the host venue, title sponsors Vencobb and NECC, and Ventive, SKS Fasteners, Elica, Marvel Realtors, Shubbaan Investments, DFMC, Automech and Kinetic while Novotel Pune Nagar Road was an associate partner.
Pune’s Rohan Dhole Patil was the best-placed of the local professionals in 14th place on 6 under 278.
Racing away
Bhattacharya, 22, began Friday with pars on the first seven holes even as Sandhu, the overnight leader by two shots, raced away to a five-shot lead at that stage.
A 12-foot birdie conversion on eight triggered the turnaround for Bhattacharya who collected five birdies over the next six holes with good work off the tee and a 25-foot putt, cutting the gap to just one shot.
Sandhu pulled away again with a birdie on 15 which his chaser parred for a two-shot lead heading into the last hole.
An errant tee shot and a short missed putt by Sandhu resulted in a bogey on 18 even as Bhattacharya drained a birdie to take the match into a playoff.
On the playoff hole, Sandhu again missed the fairway and came up with a par while his opponent was solid from tee to green for the decisive birdie and the trophy.
“It was a thrilling day of golf with the match going down to the wire,” Bhattacharya said later.
Crucial putts
“I felt like I held my nerves really well and made very crucial putts, especially the par putt on 16. On 18 the focus was on making birdie.
“The game-changer was the 25-footer for birdie on 11 which I was not really expecting. That gave me a lot of momentum.
“My mindset on the playoff hole was to stay in the present, focus on my breathing and my aim and follow my process.
“Importantly, I kept the ball in play with my tee shot on the playoff hole. That set up the finish for me. I now feel like I can close the second half of the season well.”
Also read: Sandhu holds two-shot lead after round 3 of Poona Club Open
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