Golf: Amateur Championship starts on Sunday

129th Sri Lanka Amateur Golf Championship 2016 gets underway at Victoria Golf Course from Sunday (17), with the participation of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Thailand and Afghanistan. 

The Ladies Amateur Championship is conducted concurrently with India, Pakistan and Thailand joining Sri Lanka for a four-way battle in the International Team event. 

The Sri Lanka Amateur Championship renowned as the second oldest Amateur Golf Championship in the world, initially played in 1897, following the footsteps of the British Amateur Championship conducted on a Match-play knock-out format. 

Thailand’s Witchayanon Chothirunrungrueng won the Sri Lanka Amateur Championship 2015 and topped his performance by winning the 82nd Singha Thailand Amateur Championship beating top Amateurs in the Asian region in August 2016. 

Last year’s winner won’t be defending his title but Thailand will defend with two other young Amateurs Kammalas Namuangruk and Sangchai Kaewcharoen who will be accompanied by two top notch girls to defend the Ladies Amateur Title too which the Thailand girls annexed. 

India will mount a great challenge with number 2 and 5th ranked Indian Amateurs joined by two young ladies ranked in the top 10 in India to try Win the Sri Lanka Title which was theirs in 2014. 

Sri Lankan Pro Thangaraja now successful on the Indian Pro Golf Tour was the last Sri Lankan to win having won the title consecutively in 2012 and 2013.

This year the Sri Lankan challenge rests on the shoulders of Sisira Kumara, Sanjeewa, Ranga, Indika, Amarapadma and young hopefuls Pradeep Bandara, Chanaka Perera, Chalitha Pushpika and Husni Uwise. Junior Regional Winner in Victoria in July 2016, Armand Flamer Caldera could be a wild card with great potential to cause a few upsets in the Lankan favour. 

The International Team Championship for the Parlakimedi Trophy will be played on an aggregate two member team gross score over two rounds on Monday (17) and Tuesday (18). 

The two rounds will also serve as the qualifying rounds for the Match Play Sri Lanka Amateur Championship which will have an automatic draw based on the two round qualifying scores. 

The Men’s Championship has a field of over 70 entries and 32 will qualify for Match play with the 36 hole Final scheduled to be played on Saturday 22nd October 2016. 

In the Ladies Championship eight will qualify for Match play stage and the 36-hole Final will be played on Friday (21). 

The Sri Lankan challenge in the ladies will be led by youngsters Tania Minel, Kayla Perera, Sandiya Kumari from Victoria Golf Course and consistent performer Niloo Jayathilake.