Anirban Lahiri records best PGA Tour finish in two years at Corales Championship golf

Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri enjoyed his first top-ten finish on the PGA Tour for two years as he ended tied-sixth at the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship on Sunday.

Lahiri’s last top-ten finish on the PGA Tour came at the Mayakoba Golf Classic in November 2018, where he had finished T-10.

“The last couple of seasons, I've been very disappointing,” Lahiri admitted. “I need to play myself into some of the events.” 

And he did that with aplomb at the Corales Golf Club in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

Lahiri, who had made the cut with an even-par show in the second round, had enjoyed a bogey-free third round on Saturday, sinking eight birdies. He followed it up with another solid performance on the final day.

Though Lahiri began with a bogey on the par-4 third, he carded two birdies on the first part of the course to move to one-under for the round.

Lahiri began the back nine with a bogey on the 11th but made up for it with a birdie on the par-5 12th. He hit another birdie on the 15th to eventually finish with a two-under 70 in the final round.

“I felt really good after my first event in Napa (at the Safeway Open, where he finished T-36). I had two really good rounds to finish that event as well, so I got it rolling here with some of that,” an elated Lahiri said after the day ended.

“I've definitely managed to build some momentum. Hopefully, I keep this going and maybe even play a little better.”

The top-ten finish also earned Lahiri an entry to the Sanderson Farms Championship at Jackson, Mississippi later this week.

The other Indian golfer on the course, Arjun Atwal had a challenging day in comparison. Atwal had made the cut with a four-under in the second round and carded a three-under 69 in the third.

However, a slew of bogies on the final day meant that Atwal could only manage a 5-over 77 on Sunday, ending T-70 with an overall score of one-under 287.

Swafford wins title

American golfer Hudson Swafford won his second PGA Tour title, and his first since 2017, as he carded a three-under 69 in the final round to edge out compatriot Tyler McCumber by one stroke.

McCumber had a bogey-free Sunday, scoring six birdies in contrast to Swafford’s four birdies and two double-bogeys.

However, Swafford’s consistent scores of 65, 67, and 69 in the previous rounds helped him pull through over McCumber, whose second-round 71 let him down in the end.