By Rahul Banerji
The first edition of the S.S.P. Chawrasia Invitational presented by TAKE will be played at the two-time Indian Open winner’s home course, the Royal Calcutta Golf Club from Wednesday.
The Rs 1 crore event, jointly launched by Take Sports and the Tata Steel Professional Golf Tour of India will feature a field of 126 professionals.
Besides the host, the stellar entry list features LIV Golf star Anirban Lahiri, Gaganjeet Bhullar, Rashid Khan, Ajeetesh Sandhu, Veer Ahlawat, Karandeep Kochhar, and Chikkarangappa S.
Also in the fray are the two top Order of Merit contestants Yuvraj Singh Sandhu and Manu Gandas who are first and second respectively on the money list.
Both Sandhu and Gandas have a record five wins each to their name this season.
Leading foreign entries include Sri Lankans Mithun Perera, N. Thangaraja, and Anura Rohana, besides Bangladesh’s Jamal Hossain, Badal Hossain, Md Akbar Hossain and Nepal’s Sukra Bahadur Rai.
The other prominent names participating from Kolkata are Viraj Madappa, Sunit Chowrasia, Divyanshu Bajaj, Shankar Das, Mohammad Sanju, Arjun Puri and Raju Ali Mollah.
Chawrasia will become the second Indian professional golfer after Jeev Milkha Singh to have a PGTI event named in his honour.
Inspirational figure
S.S.P. has a long list of accomplishments including being one of only two Indian golfers to have won four DP World Tour titles, six Asian Tour titles besides his two Indian Open wins.
He represented India at the Rio Olympics 2016 and the World Cup of Golf the same year. He also represented Asia at the EurAsia Cup in 2016 and 2018.
Chawrasia, winner of 17 professional titles, was honoured with the Arjuna Award in 2017.
Speaking ahead of the event, the tournament host said, “I’m extremely excited about hosting the inaugural S.S.P. Chawrasia Invitational presented by TAKE.
“It’s a great honour to have an event on the PGTI named after me. I would like to thank Mr. Srinivasan HR, TAKE, PGTI, and RCGC for supporting this event.
“The rich prize purse on offer, depth in the field, and the excellent playing conditions provided by the RCGC promise a week of top-quality golfing action.
“I’m also looking forward to performing well at my home course.”
‘Great privilege’
Added Take’s Srinivasan, “I am privileged to partner an Indian golfing great in launching the Invitational as recognition of his inspirational achievements on the global stage which have brought glory to the country.
“We seek to build this event into one of the biggest attractions on the PGTI calendar following the example of the Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational which has been a roaring success.
“I would like to wish the players all the best as we look forward to a highly competitive week with a strong field in attendance at the event.”
“The inaugural Chawrasia Invitational is an acknowledgment of his path-breaking accomplishments on the international stage. His feats serve as an inspiration for young Indian golfers,” he added.
“The RCGC is proud of his outstanding achievements and honoured to host the inaugural S.S.P. Chawrasia Invitational in partnership with PGTI and TAKE,” said RCGC captain Rohan Ghosh.
Glittering history
“Besides SSP, the RCGC has produced many other golfers of international repute such as Arjun Atwal, Rahil Gangjee, Feroz Ali Mollah, Viraj Madappa, Indrajit Bhalotia, Shankar Das and Ashok Malik, to name a few.
“We seek to build on this rich legacy by continuing to produce more champion golfers from RCGC with the staging of events such as the Chawrasia Invitational.
“We have worked towards providing the perfect playing conditions and we’re confident that the best golfers in the country will relish the experience of playing at the RCGC.”
The Royal Calcutta Golf Club, affectionately known as the ‘Royal’, is the oldest golf club outside of the British Isles, and was established in 1829.
The 7,014-yard course favours long hitters and inaccurate shots are punished severely. A large number of water hazards makes this course a real challenge.
Also read: DGC to host new PGTI event; Chawrasia, Kapur are top draws
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