Mhow’s Om Prakash Chouhan nailed a hole-in-one, an eagle and six birdies in his opening round of the Coal India Open at Kolkata’s Tollygunge Club on Tuesday. Image courtesy DP World PGTI.
By Rahul Banerji
Former Order of Merit winner Om Prakash Chouhan set the Tollygunge Club course alight with an entertaining opening round of the Rs 1 crore Coal India Open in Kolkata on Tuesday.
Chouhan’s 8 under par 62 included an ace on the par-3 hole eight and another eagle on the par-5 13th to hold a one-shot lead over Chandigarh’s Ajeetesh Sandhu on the par-70 course, the DP World PGTI said.
The 40-year-old from Mhow in Madhya Pradesh also had six birdies against two dropped shots even as former Asian Tour winner Sandhu put together eight birdies and a bogey on his 7 under 63 in the second edition of the tournament.
Delhi’s Shaurya Bhattacharya, ranked 17th on the DP World PGTI Rankings, and Pune’s Kshitij Naveed Kaul, fifth in the season’s standings, shared third place on 6 under 64.
Bangladesh’s Jamal Hossain and Badal Hossain, Greater Noida’s Arjun Sharma, and 16-year-old Kartik Singh of Gurgaon, one of the youngest professionals on the tour, were tied for fifth at 5 under 65.
Chouhan, who is based at Kalhaar Blues & Greens in Ahmedabad, topped the DP World PGTI Order of Merit in 2023 and is also a former HotelPlanner Tour winner. His familiarity with the venue played a big role in his strong start.
Familiar track
“The conditions at Tollygunge Club suit my game, and I enjoy playing this course,” said Chouhan.
“I have performed well here in the past having won the last DP World PGTI event staged here in February this year, so I followed a similar game-plan today.”
Chouhan also highlighted his eagle on the 13th. He found the fairway with a three-wood before using his preferred hybrid on approach and converted the putt from around 18 feet.
“I struck the ball well for most of the round and am very happy with where my game is,” he said.
Sandhu, who is ranked 18th this season, credited his putting and the progress made since last week’s J&K Open for his opening 63.
“I had a very good day on the greens,” said Sandhu.
“There were some encouraging signs last week, although I was still a little rusty. I built on that during the Pro-Am and practice round this week, so I’m happy that everything came together today.”
Quick adjustment
The change from Srinagar’s altitude to Kolkata’s humid conditions required Sandhu to adjust his yardages. He said he adjusted well and accurately assessed how far the ball was travelling in the contrasting conditions.
Sandhu’s standout birdie came on the 14th after he missed the fairway to the right. He played a low recovery shot through the trees from the rough, hit it to within 15 feet and converted the putt.
“That birdie was particularly satisfying,” he said.
Bangalore’s Khalin Joshi, who celebrated his 34th birthday on Tuesday, carried the momentum from last week’s nine-shot victory at the J&K Open into the new week with a 4 under 66 for tied ninth place.
Rankings leader Saptak Talwar carded a 3 under 67 to end the day in a tie for 14th.
In a field of 132, 40 shot even-par or better on the day.
Also read: Joshi seals dominant run at J&K Open for season’s second title
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