Defending champion Shiva Ram shares fifth position‚ Sanjay finishes ninth

Kathmandu :

Chikkarangappa S defeated fellow Indian pro Shankar Das in the second playoff hole to win the Surya Nepal Masters at the Gokarna Golf Club today.

The match went to extra holes after the duo returned with matching scores of 15-under 273. While overnight leader Chikkarangappa – who began the day with three stroke advantage — played an even-par 72 in the final round, Das carded a four-under 68 to force the playoff.

Both the players saved pars on the first extra hole before Chikkarangappa carded a birdie on the second hole after Das failed to make it from 15 feet. Last year’s runner-up Abhijit Singh Chadha (68) and Abhinav Lohan (70) shared the third position at 14-under.

Defending champion and Nepal No 1 pro Shiva Ram Shrestha fired five-under 67 — his second in the tournament — to share the fifth spot with first-round leader Angad Cheema at 13-under 275. Former winner Shamim Khan was next at 11-under, one stroke ahead of Feroz Ali Mollah.

Out of the total cash purse of Rs 4.8 Million, Chikkarangappa pocketed Rs 775,920, while Das received Rs 535,920. Chadha and Lohan earned Rs 271,920 each, while Shiva Ram and Cheema got Rs 183,120 apiece. Minister for Communication and Information Minendra Rijal and Managing Director of Surya Nepal Pvt Ltd Abhimanyu Poddar handed over the prizes to the winners.

Shiva Ram made a desired start with birdies on the second and third holes before dropping a shot on the next. He then eagled the par-5 seventh to take the turn at three-under 33. Shiva Ram, who won the last year’s title beating Chadha in playoff, carded two straight birdies on the 11th and 12th and faced his second bogey of the day on the next hole. He then carded a birdie on the 16th to finish the back nine at two-under 34.

“The second round score of even-par made all the difference,” said Shiva Ram. “I was concentrating in my own game today but when I saw the scores on the 12th hole, I felt that I can catch them. But I fell behind after I missed birdie chances on the 15th and 18th holes,” said Shiva Ram.

Nepal’s Sanjay Lama (70) was tied on ninth position along with Asbeer Saini, Gulfam and Sanjay Kumar at eight-under 280. Among other Nepali golfers, home club pro Umesh Nagarkoti (70) shared the 15th position at six-under 282, while Surya Prasad Sharma (72) was tied on 31st at one-over. Purna Sharma (71) and Suman Rai (72) shared the 37th position at three-over, while Toran Bikram Shahi (74) and Rabi Khadka (76) were tied on 40th at four-over 292.

Veteran Deepak Thapa Magar (74) — the first Nepali pro to win the Masters in 2007 — finished 43rd at eight-over, while Pashupati Sharma (82) shared the 49th position at 18-over. Bikash Bogati (77) won the amateur section title with the total score of 11-over 299, while Sanjeev CK (77) came second at 16-over in the two-man field after the duo survived the cut.

source: http://www.thehimalayantimes.com / The Himalayan Times / Home> Full News / Himalayan News Service / Kathmandu – April 26th, 2014