Poona Club will see young brigade challenge established order again

By Rahul Banerji

The Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour will set another record for entries to the fourth leg of the 2021 calendar with 38 entrants lining up at the Poona Club course from Wednesday.

Tvesa Malik and Gaurika Bishnoi return to action will further up the intensity at the Poona Club Golf course with a host of young names already jostling for attention.

The fourth leg in 2021, which will be combined with the nine held in 2020 for a consolidated Hero Order of Merit, has on offer a Rs 10 lakh purse.

At the Poona Club course, Avani Prashanth leads the young brigade that has already had a significant impact.

In the first two events of 2021, two amateurs finished in the Top-10.

Disha Kavery was fourth in Bangalore and Sneha Sharan was T7, while Sneha Singh and Avani were T7 in Chennai.

Warning signs

In the third leg. Avani emerged winner, all combining to send a warning to the established ranks.

After Ridhima Dilawari started 2021 with a win in Bangalore, Pranavi Urs won in Chennai before 14-year-old Avani stunned the field with a superb win in Mumbai.

Her displays at the Bombay Presidency included two rounds of 3-under 67 on the first and third days. She will be looking to become the first to win back-to-back titles while retaining her amateur status.

In 2020 Pranavi won the second leg as an amateur but turned professional before the third leg, which also she won.

With a whole bunch of young stars posing a big challenge, the established stars are not expected to have it easy at Poona Club.

Tvesa, who had a solid 2020 while playing in Europe despite the pandemic, skipped the first three legs, as did Gaurika Bishnoi, former Hero Order of Merit winner.

Both are now back.

Shifting focus

Tvesa, who is increasingly focusing on the Ladies European Tour, has not won at home since her three titles in 2019, while Gaurika has beem waiting too since her two successes, also in 2019.

Meanwhile Amandeep Drall, current Order of Merit leader, will be hoping to go one better than her second place finish in Chennai behind Avani.

Since the Tour re-started in December, Amandeep has twice finished second behind an amateur.

In the seventh leg of 2020, which heralded the re-start of the Tour, she was beaten to the line by Sneha Singh, and last week it was Avani.

Vani Kapoor, winless since the fifth leg in 2020, Ridhima Dilawari, Diksha Dagar and Hitaashee Bakshi will all be looking to turn the corner this week.

Second leg winner Pranavi Urs will not be starting this week, as she withdrew with a wrist injury.

However, Neha Tripathi, who had also withdrawn in Mumbai after feeling unwell, is back in the fray at the Poona Club.

First round tee times

 8:30 am : Gaurika Bishnoi; Vani Kapoor

 8:40 am : Rhea Jha; Shagun Narain; Shriya Vivek

 8:50 am: Rhea Purvi Saravanan; Mehar Atwal; Jahanvi Bakshi

 9 am : Ridhima Dilawari; Geetika Ahuja; Neha Tripathi

 9:10 am : Seher Atwal; Oviya Reddi; Jyotsana Singh

 9:25 am : Gauri Karhade; Tvesa Malik; Khushi Hooda (A)

 9:35 am : Trimann Saluja; Diksha Dagar; Ananya Datar

 9:45 am : Ishvari Prasanna; Ayesha Kapur; Puneet K. Bajwa (A)

 9:55 am: Avani Prashanth (A); Anousha Tripathi; Astha Madan

10:10 am : Amandeep Drall; Nishna Patel (A); Hitaashee Bakshi

10:20 am : Sneha Singh (A); Marshneil Prasad; Saaniya Sharma

10:30 am: Khushi Khanijau; Disha Kavery; Shweta Mansingh

10:40 am : Durga Nittur; Asmitha Sathish; Nayanika Sanga (A)

Also read: Avani Prashanth, 14, nicks it at Bombay Presidency from the big girls