By Rahul Banerji
Tokyo Olympian Udayan Mane fired a 7-under 65 for the early lead in the PGTI’s Rs. 40 lakh J&K Open 2021 at the Royal Springs Golf Course in Srinagar on Wednesday.
Delhi’s Rashid Khan and Honey Baisoya and Veer Ahlawat of Gurgaon, runner-up at the PGTI event last week, shot 5-under 67s to share second place.
Om Prakash Chouhan of Mhow, Chandigarh’s Akshay Sharma and Patna’s Aman Raj returned 4-under 68s to be tied fifth, the Professional Golf Tour of India said.
Delhi-based Kshitij Naveed Kaul, who has his origins in J&K, carded a 70 to be tied 14th.
Indian golf legend Jyoti Randhawa posted a level-par 72 to occupy tied 25th place.
Pawan Parihar was the highest-placed of the J&K-based golfers. Parihar, from the Jammu Tawi Golf Course, also produced a 72 on the day.
The Pune-based Mane made a dream start with eight birdies on the first 10 holes.
Precise hitting
He struck the ball with precision, landing to within six feet of the pin to set up birdies on the first, third, fourth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth holes.
On the 10th the big-built Mane sank a 12-footer to move to eight-under for the day.
Mane then slowed down on the back nine as the putts didn’t roll in for him. He dropped a shot on 15 but saved a good par from the bunker on 16.
Mane said, “I started off with a bang and was seven-under thru nine holes and eight-under through 10.
“Coming in I didn’t really make enough putts to keep the round going. I was looking at a 59 after 10 but it didn’t go as per plan for me on the back nine.”
On playing a professional event for the first time at the Royal Springs, Udayan said, “The main thing is to enjoy where you are and the golf will take care of itself.
“One needs to soak in the scenery and enjoy the surroundings in order to be in a better frame of mind to hit one’s shots.
Standout spots
“The fifth hole stands out for me as one of the most scenic spots on the course as one gets a good view of Dal Lake from there.
But there are a lot of other scenic spots too, like the 18th tee box, 18th green and the ninth hole fairway.
“Everything just looks awesome. We are indebted to J&K Tourism for inviting us here and need such sponsors to keep the game alive in India.”
Before his tee-off in the morning, Mane got to interact with children from government schools who are undergoing training at a government golf academy.
On the experience of meeting budding golfers, Mane said, “It was amazing to see so many young boys and girls take up the game.
Good step
“The initiative to set up a golf academy in Srinagar is a step in the right direction. Hopefully, the presence of us professionals here in Srinagar can motivate these school kids.
“This tournament gives the school children a great opportunity to interact with the professionals and also be able to see and gauge what they are required to do to play at this level.”
Of the three in tied second place, Ahlawat and Honey Baisoya had error-free rounds while Rashid made seven birdies and two bogeys.
Bangalore’s Chikkarangappa S., the last winner at Royal Springs ended with a 73 to be tied 39th while PGTI Order of Merit leader Karandeep Kochhar of Chandigarh was a further two shots back in tied 63rd.
Also read: J&K Open sees professional men’s golf return to Kashmir Valley
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