By Rahul Banerji
The European Challenge Tour and Tata Steel Professional Golf Tour of India will hold the inaugural Delhi Challenge at the Classic Golf and Country Club from March 14 to 17.
The tournament is co-sanctioned by the Challenge Tour and Tata Steel PGTI, and carries a prize purse of $300,000.
This is the third such event following the 2023 strategic partnership between the DP World Tour and Tata Steel PGTI and follows the initial two that were held back-to-back in Bangalore last March.
The fourth and final tournament will be played as the Kolkata Challenge at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club from March 21 to 24.
Leading Indian players in the field include Challenge Tour winner and 2023 rankings topper Om Prakash Chouhan, current leader Manu Gandas, Aman Raj, Karan Pratap Singh and Sachin Baisoya amongst others.
Top names from the Challenge Tour in the field include Road to Mallorca leader Mikael Lindberg of Sweden, fellow Swede Björn Åkesson, France’s Martin Couvra, England’s Sam Hutsby and Denmark’s Lucas Bjerregaard.
Leading trio
Lindberg leads the Road to Mallorca standings with Åkesson in fourth place, and Hutsby fifth.
Challenge Tour director Jamie Hodges said, “It’s brilliant to be back in India for back-to-back weeks for the second year running. These two weeks provide an opportunity for the Challenge Tour to build on the resounding success of last year.
“The global nature of the Challenge Tour has never been more evident, and we’re delighted to be working closely with our friends at the PGTI as we visit two new venues in the early stages of our 2024 season.
“These events play a critical role in our schedule at a time of the season when it’s difficult for us to play in most of Europe. We’re excited to be back and are looking forward to two great weeks, starting here in Delhi.”
Added PGTI CEO Uttam Singh Mundy, “We are delighted to welcome the Challenge Tour back in India as part of our strategic partnership with the DP World Tour.
“The tournament presents a great opportunity to provide international exposure to Indian professionals. Om Prakash Chouhan’s success at the Challenge Tour event in India last year opened many doors for him on the international stage.
“We hope more Indian players will be inspired by Om Prakash’s feat and will look to follow in his footsteps this year.”
Also read: Bhullar wins second Tour C’ship title, Chouhan is season-topper
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