Khalin Joshi (second from left) receives his Bengaluru Open trophy and winner’s cheque from Siddharth Agarwal of Indian Oil (far left), KGA president Col. C.P. Nanjappa (second from right) and Tour chief business officer Vikas Singh in Bangalore on Friday. Image courtesy DP World PGTI.
By Rahul Banerji
Khalin Joshi completed a dominant flag-to-flag victory at the Rs 1 crore Bengaluru Open powered by IndianOil at the Karnataka Golf Association course on Friday.
It was the 34-year-old’s maiden professional win on his home course and he wrapped up a standout performance with a 2 under par 70 after earlier rounds of 61, 68 and 69 to win his 10th Tour title by a comfortable five shots.
Five birdies against two dropped shots on Friday saw Joshi rack up an impressive tournament total of 20 under 268 to net his second title in as many weeks and the fourth overall this season, the DP World PGTI said.
Joshi began the final round with a three-shot advantage over Manu Gandas (69-68-64-72) of Gurgaon and steadily worked towards buttressing the margin through the final round.
The Asian Tour winner in 2018 earned Rs 15 lakh and climb from seventh to second on the 2026 DP World PGTI Order of Merit, taking his season earnings to Rs 67,34,225.
Gandas, the 2023 rankings champion, made one birdie and one bogey in an even-par 72 to on 15 under 273. He earned Rs 10 lakh and rose from 20th to 12th in the standings with Rs 40,56,383.
Gurgaon’s Veer Ahlawat (68-69-69-70), the 2024 Rankings champion, made two birdies in a bogey-free 70 to share third place on 12 under 276 with Greater Noida’s Saptak Talwar (67-70-68-71).
Well ahead
Talwar’s round featured six birdies, two bogeys and a triple. The Race to DP World India Championship leader earned Rs 5,49,800, taking his total to Rs 96,82,284. Ahlawat remained third in the standings with earnings of Rs 62,87,000.
Joshi attributed his recent success to greater mental strength and an improved ability to remain composed in contention.
“I’ve always considered myself a good player, but I had never closed tournaments as comfortably as I have over the past few months,” Joshi said.
“My mind used to race, which led to mental errors and missed opportunities. I feel stronger now and know that when I’m playing my best, I’m difficult to beat.”
Despite leading throughout the week, Joshi admitted to feeling nervous before pursuing his first professional victory at his home course.
A 35-foot birdie putt on the opening hole settled him, but a three-putt bogey on the second immediately tested his composure.
“The birdie on the first calmed my nerves, but the bogey on the second made it feel as though I was starting again,” he said.
“It was a roller-coaster day—I felt nervous, then confident and then nervous again.”
Two further bogeys did not persuade Joshi to become defensive. He continued attacking and creating birdie opportunities as he protected his lead.
Staying positive
“I knew I had a comfortable advantage, but I had to remain aggressive,” he said. “I maintained that approach on the back nine and hit some good shots coming down the stretch.”
Winning at the course where he began playing as a child made the title especially meaningful.
“I have no words because winning here is something I’ve always dreamed about,” Joshi said. “I’ve played good golf at KGA over the years but never managed to close out a tournament. To finally win at home means a great deal.”
Joshi led for all eight rounds across his consecutive wire-to-wire victories in Nava Raipur and now here.
Down the road is the DP World India Championship at the Delhi Golf Club from October 15 to 18, the same venue Joshi won his maiden international title, the Panasonic Open India in 2018.
“I have wonderful memories of Delhi Golf Club,” he said. “I’m playing well and look forward to returning there and hopefully continuing this form.”
Khalin’s win at Srinagar in August was also a wire-to-wire triumph.
Ahlawat and Talwar now fly to Japan for the Asian Games alongside Yuvraj Sandhu from September 30 to October 3 at Kasugai Country Club’s East Course.
The Bengaluru Open concluded the race for the top 60 on the 2026 DP World PGTI Order of Merit. Those finishing inside the top 60 after the Bengaluru Open retained their playing rights for the 2026–27 season.
Also read: Joshi maintains edge with hard-fought round at Bengaluru Open
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