Anirban Lahiri and co pip Rahil Ganjee's team to win Tata Steel Pro-Am event
Lahiri and his team managed to post a total of 116 on the board
US-based Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri's team beat Rahil Gangjee's squad to clinch the Pro-Am event of the Tata Steel Tour Championship 2020 in Jamshedpur on Wednesday.
The event was inaugurated by Arjun Munda, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs and a keen follower of golf.
Lahiri, who returned to play in Jamshedpur after 13 years, took to the course with amateurs Arjun Munda, Sanjiv Paul and Rajeev Chopra and scored a team total of 116.
Whereas, Kolkata-based Ganjee who had Tarun Daga, Prashant Maurya and Nipam Mehta in his team reached a total of 110 and had to settle with a runners-up spot.
Col. Vikramjit Singh Panag won the prize for the longest drive on hole no. 12 as his drive travelled 299 yards.
Hamid Raza Khan was rewarded for the straightest drive on hole no. 8 as his shot landed one foot from the centre of the fairway.
Meanwhile, Tanisha and Rajiv Mehta won the prize for the closest to the pin on hole number seven and 17 respectively.
The four-day tournament, which began on December 16, has a prize money of Rs 1.5 crore and will have 125 golfers taking part in it. This is the seventh event of the 2020-21 PGTI season and has 72-hole stroke play championship.
Apart from Lahiri, SSP Chawrasia, Gaganjeet Bhullar, Jyoti Randhawa, Shiv Kumar, and Shiv Kapur are set to ply their trade in this tournament. Highest-ranked Indian golfer Rashid Khan will also be part of the competition.
After a hiatus of six years, a PGTI event will be held simultaneously in both Beldih and Golmuri golf courses which have 18 holes each.
The organisers have left no stone unturned in their bid to keep coronavirus at bay during this tournament. Over 300 personnel, including players and support staff, have undergone Covid tests.
"It is heartening to see PGTI organising the tournament even during a pandemic. Every player has to return to the pavilion after every round while his/her caddy will carry a sanitiser for the participant," informed Sanjiv Paul, Tata Steel vice-president (safety, health and sustainability).