KOLKATA
Om Prakash Chouhan birdied the final hole to total six-under 282 and secure a one-stroke win to claim his 11th career title at the S.S.P. Chawrasia Invitational event at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club (RCGC) course here on Sunday.
Overnight leader Chouhan, who began his final round by gaining a shot, overcame a rough patch – which included four bogeys over the next 13 holes as he struggled with his putting and lost his lead briefly – to hit an accurate approach shot very close to the 18th hole and effortlessly putted it to pump his fist out of joy. His one-over 73 was good enough to bring him his fourth trophy of the season.
The 37-year-old, hailing from Mhow in Madhya Pradesh, bagged the winner’s purse of Rs 15 lakh to bolster his position atop the Order of Merit as his season’s earnings swelled to Rs 1,13,80,559. He became the first player to cross the Rs 1 crore barrier in season’s earnings on the Professional Golf Tour of India.
“Having closed out a few matches earlier in the year, I had the confidence that I can do it again,” said Chouhan.
American rookie Varun Chopra shot a three-under 69 to take the runner-up spot at five-under 283 after shooting the day’s joint lowest score of 69. It was the second runner-up finish for the 24-year-old.
The scores:
282-Om Prakash Chouhan (70, 69, 70, 73); 283-Varun Chopra (73,72, 69, 69); 284-Angad Cheema (75, 67, 72, 70); 286-Udayan Mane (73, 68, 73, 72) and Rashid Khan (75,70, 69,72).
