DP World card-holder Yuvraj Sandhu in action at the Classic Golf and Country Club near Gurgaon. Image courtesy DP World PGTI.
By Rahul Banerji
The inaugural $300,000 DP World PGTI Open is into its first day at the Classic Golf and Country Club near Gurgaon with top Indian talent taking on stars from the HotelPlanner Tour.
The co-sanctioned tournament has a field of 150 players including 74 from the HotelPlanner Tour with the top 60 players and ties will make the cut after two rounds at the par-72 course.
It is the second dollar event on the DP World PGTI schedule in a week, the tour said.
The field features DP World Tour card-holder Yuvraj Sandhu, his predecessors Veer Ahlawat, Om Prakash Chouhan, and Manu Gandas, besides domestic stars Saptak Talwar, Shaurya Bhattacharya, and Honey Baisoya.
Leading names from the HotelPlanner Tour in the field include Ireland’s Gary Hurley, Englishman Tom Lewis, South African M.J. Daffue, Spain’s Pablo Ereno, and Tapio Pulkkanen of Finland.
Meanwhile, Hurley is hoping his game continues to trend in the right direction on the Classic course, the HotelPlanner Tour said.
The Irishman, who spent all of 2025 on the sidelines with an injury, returned to action with a positive four weeks in South Africa to begin 2026.
Hurley made the cut at all four events with a season-best ninth place finish in the Cape Town Open, results that see him sit 26th on the early Road to Mallorca Rankings.
The 33-year-old is looking to carry his positive and pain-free start into the fifth event of the campaign.
“It’s been good,” he said. “I hadn’t played a tournament in over a year, so it was nice to make all four cuts in South Africa.
Ireland’s Gary Hurley is on a comeback after missing 2025 with injury and is looking forward to a solid performance in India. Courtesy HotelPlanner Tour/Getty Images.
Pain-free
“I don’t really have any pain anymore which is obviously the number one priority.
“I know that I have the ability to earn promotion from the HotelPlanner Tour this year and I want to give myself the best opportunity to do that.”
Hurley believes his mentality is the key to success. “The course is good, I’m happy to be able to get out here and play,” he added.
“Last year was difficult in moments. You find yourself not paying attention to golf scores and how people are doing, because it’s hard to see what your peers are doing.
“I’m still not 100 percent, but I’ve figured out how to work with and around my injury.
“I’m trying to believe in myself a little bit more, and I believe that the game I have is good enough to win out here which I think is important.
“I will be going in with that mentality, taking control of the controllables.”
Hurley tees off alongside Badal Hossain and Mohd Azhar in one of the late groups on Thursday.
Also read: Talwar wins Indorama Ventures Open with solid closing run
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