Sri Lankan pro golfers tee off into new season
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Prabagaran (L), Anura Rohana and Mithu Perera (R) are three pro golfers who represent Sri Lanka overseas
The top four Sri Lankan Professional Golfers R A Anura Rohana, Mithun Perera, N. Thangaraja and K. Prabagaran, ventured into the new season of PGTI (Professionals Golf Tour of India) 2019, as they participate in the curtain raiser in Hyderabad, at the Golconda Masters 2019, played at the Hyderabad Golf Club, from February 6th – 9th.
After 3 Rounds M. Dharma led the field at 16 under par, from youngster Karandeep Kochhar, Multiple Winners Rashid Khan, S. Chikkarangappa and TOP Qualifier of 2019, Priyanshu Singh all at 14 under. 2018 Top Ranked Khalin L Joshi took 6th place at 13 under par. Udayan Mane at 12 under secured 7th place ahead of Honey Baisoya, Gaurav Pratap Singh and Aman Raj on 11 under, tied for 8th. Sri Lanka’s N. Thangaraja with 10 under lies in 11th place going in to the final round, Saturday. Mithun Perera also made the Cut and was in 33rd place on 2 under par.
Anura Rohana missed the Cut by one stroke, whilst Praba withdrew in the 2nd round due to injury after returning a creditable 1 under in Round 1.
The PGTI 2018, was a good year for the Sri Lankans, with Thangaraja Ranked 10th, Anura Rohana Ranked 11th and Perera in 13th. All three Sri Lankans won an Event each in the 2018 PGTI, with Rohana recording an outstanding victory at the Karnataka Golf Course in Bengaluru, at the back-end of the Tour Calendar.
Rohana, Asian Games Silver Medalist in 2002, has being flying the Lankan flag with pride as a leading professional golfer on the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) and the Asian Golf Tour, ever since!
Rohana Ranked # 2 on the PGTI 2017 rankings, played more in the Asian Tour in 2018, but once again made his mark winning the Bengaluru Open Golf Championship 2018, which attracted an impressive field of 125 top professionals vying for the top prize including over 10 top Asian Tour Professionals as well from India playing on their home soil.
Rohana’s opening round of five under par placed him in 4th one stroke behind three joint leaders on six under par. The second round saw Anura Rohana firing a stunning 8 under par to stride in to a clear 3 stroke lead at the halfway mark. At the press interview of the leader after the 2 round cut-off, Anura Rohana was asked for his comments on his brilliant 8 under par round and if he was going to play safe in the 3rd round? A confident Aunra Rohana replied “I love the Karnataka Golf Course in Bengaluru and I believe it is the best Course in India and we can’t have any excuses as the Greens, bunkers, fairways, Tees are comparable to the best in the world and the Course is long and challenging and the bold players can attack the Pin without fear. Most certainly I will not play safe, as this field has at least 20 top players including Asian Tour players who are stacked up behind the leader and I need to stay focused”. “I am playing with much confidence thanks to my sponsor “Softlogic Life Insurance” and the support extended to me by the Chairman Mr. Ashok Pathirage, allows me to play my game without looking over my shoulder trying to manage my tour costs.”
As expressed with confidence Anura Rohana fired another 5 under par 3rd round to extend his lead to 5 strokes going in to the final round. Although many players were waiting to pounce, Anura Rohana further extended his lead to eight strokes with 3 holes to play! An unwarranted double-bogey reduced his lead but bold play in the final Par 5 hole reaching the Green in 2, three putting but still had three strokes to spare with a winning aggregate of 19 under par. Rohanas’ incredible feat of firing a total 24 birdies in the four rounds, with the 2nd & 3rd rounds bogey free and the 1st round having just 2 bogeys and the final round a single bogey and double bogey to seal an incredible victory with a grand 19 under par total.
Anura Rohana now a multiple winner on the PGTI has earned the full tour card for the next three years and assures that he will continue to make an impact on the Asian Tour & PGTI as well in 2019. Rohana also earned the country spot in the Asian Tour, as the highest Sri Lankan earner in the Asian Tour 2018.
Anura Rohana, Mithun Perera, N. Thangaraja have all won on the PGTI in 2018 and are all Multiple Winners, with Thangaraja ranked 10th, Anura Rohana 11th and Mithun 13th in the PGTI 2018 year-end rankings.
The next PGTI 2019 event is the 2019 PGTI Players Championship – Classic Golf Country Club, Mewat, Haryana, from 12 -15 February, following the Golconda Masters coming to an end this week. Anura Rohana has vowed to make more impact in the PGTI 2019 and the Asian Tour 2019, as a mark of gratitude to his sponsor “Softlogic Life Insurance”.
| PGTI 2018 RANKINGS AT A GLANCE | |
| Khalin H Joshi Viraj Madappa S. Chikkarangappa Om Prakash Chouhan Shamim Khan Aman Raj Honey Baisoya M. Dharma Karandeep Kochhar N. Thangaraja (Sri Lanka) R A Anura Rohana (Sri Lanka) Mukesh Kumar Mithun Perera (Sri Lanka) Akshay Sharma Harendra Gupta |