Shubhankar Sharma finishes 48th at BMW PGA Championship golf

Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma carded birdies in the final two holes at the BMW PGA Championship in Surrey, England and ended the European Tour event tied-48th on Sunday.

The 24-year-old Sharma, however, slipped four spots from his overnight position. He started the final round with three bogeys in the first 11 holes but managed to make amends on the turn.

Sharma, a two-time European Tour winner, eventually carded an aggregate even-par 288 (73-70-72-72) for the course in Virginia Water over the four days.

Englishman Tyrrell Hatton took the title at the Wentworth Golf Club with a 19-under par, four strokes ahead of Frenchman Victor Perez.

In the final round, Shubhankar Sharma was two-over with two holes to go, which would have dropped him to 57th place in the leaderboard.

But birdies on the 17th and 18th helped him salvage the round, which he ended at one-over 73.

It was a similar story in the third round as well. Two double bogeys by the fourth hole had put Shubhankar Sharma on the backfoot. But the Indian bounced back, proceeding bogeyless thereafter and carding four birdies on the way.

Sharma’s efforts ensured that he finished the third round on-par and gained a place in the standings from his overnight tied-45.

Striking it rich in the Rolex Series

The BMW PGA Championship outing will nevertheless be a positive outing for the Indian. After missing the cut five times in six European Tour outings earlier this year, Shubhankar Sharma has now made the cut in the last four starts.

Incidentally, it was the second finish for Shubhankar Sharma at a Rolex Series event, -- where higher prize funds are on offer -- after the Scottish Open last week, where he recorded his best result of the year with a tied-26th.

Fellow Indian golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar also took part in the BMW PGA Championship but couldn’t make the cut for the weekend.

The Scottish Championship is the next round on the European Tour calendar. The event will start on October 15.