By Rahul Banerji
Delhi pro golfer Rashid Khan shot a final round of 10-under-54 to clinch victory by four shots at 14-under 149 at the Tata Steel PGTI Feeder Tour at the BSF Golf Course in Chhawla, New Delhi, on Friday.
Chandigarh’s Akshay Sharma (59) and defending champion Dhruv Sheoran (61) of Delhi shared second place at 10-under-153.
With two holes, the third and 12th found to be in unplayable condition, the third round featured 16 holes.
Par for the course for round three was set at 64 and Khan made good ground to catch and then pass overnight Sheoran by a confortable margin.
Rashid (61-31-54), who finished with birdies on the last five holes in round three, thus continued his streak with a fourth title in eight months. His previous three wins since December 2018 had come on the PGTI’s main tour.
Said Rashid later, “I struck it well through the week. To be honest, I was a little disappointed that we could play only nine holes in round two, as I felt I could’ve capitalised yesterday had we played a full round of 18 holes.
“I needed a good start today and I got it on the front nine. I knew making four to five more birdies on the back-nine would put a lot of pressure on the leaders. That plan worked out well for me. Importantly, I made two chip-ins today at very crucial junctures.
“This win really lifts my confidence ahead of the second half of the PGTI season,” added Rashid, who also won the PGTI main tour event in Chandigarh in May, the last event on the main tour before the mid-season break.
Asian stars feel the heat
Meanwhile, a PGA Tour statement said Asian stars Jazz Janewattananond, C.T. Pan and Haotong Li would be under close scrutiny at The Open Championship and World Golf Championships-FedEx St Jude Invitational as they look to lock in their Presidents Cup debuts.
With weeks remaining until the top eight players on the International and US teams officially qualify for the event at the Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia from December 9 to 15, the trio will be gunning for Official World Golf Ranking points in the next two weeks.
The 23-year-old Jazz, money list leader on both the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour, sits on the bubble in eighth position on the Internationals standings, thanks to his wins in Singapore and Korea this season.
Ranked 53rd in the world, he would have hoped for a strong show at The Open but was off the pace at 5-over par and will miss the cut expected to fall at 2-over 142.
Shubhankar makes cut
India’s Shubhankar Sharma, while not in the direct race for the Internationals’ slots, made the cut at level par 142 alongside playing partner Louis Oosthuizen of South Africa.
The two had identical cards of 70 and 72, while Brooks Koepka, the third member of the group was four shots behind clubhouse leader Shane Lowry on 5-under 137 with at least half the field still in play.
China’s Li is in his third successive Open appearance, with a third place finish at Royal Birkdale in 2017 still fresh in his memories, though at Royal Portrush he too is currently under the cut line with a 3-over 74 on day one.
Currently fifth on the International Team’s standings, the talented Chinese had however, had a steady 2019 campaign with of three top 10s and three top 20s around the world.
“Yeah, for sure (I want to play in the Presidents Cup) since the last time I was nearly there. I just need to keep playing well. As no Chinese has played in the event before, I want to be the first. I think it’ll be a great time for China golf and for my country,” said Li of his Presidents Cup aspirations.
Close eye
Internationals captain Ernie Els has been keeping a close eye on Li, whom he played alongside when the young Chinese produced a final round 63 at Royal Birkdale.
“He’s a confident young man. He’s the new breed of Chinese power golfers and has a great attitude. Li can be a great addition to my team,” said Els.
Pan, winner of the RBC Heritage on the PGA TOUR in April, is hoping to become the first golfer from Chinese Taipei to play in the Presidents Cup where he currently lies in sixth place on the team’s standing. He will also probably miss out at the British Open, though after a first day 6-over par card of 77.
“I want to make history by being the first one,” said Pan, who played a practice round with Li on Tuesday which could prove to be a formidable partnership at Royal Melbourne this December.
“The Ryder Cup sparks great enthusiasm amongst the fans and that’s something I want to do for golf fans in Chinese Taipei. Our fans don’t have a team to root for … I want to make the team for the fans.”
Also read: Kushal Singh takes early lead at PGTI Feeder Tour opener
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