News Summary
Editorial Review.
- On the first day of the Surya Nepal Western Open under the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2075-76, five golfers shared the top position with an even-par 69 score.
- A total of 26 professional and 16 amateur players are competing, playing 54 holes over three days.
- The winner will receive a cash prize of NPR 170,000, with the total prize pool reaching NPR 1,050,000.
4 Chaitra, Pokhara – On the first day of the fifth tournament and 26th edition of the Surya Nepal Western Open under the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2075-76, five golfers jointly held the lead.
Professional golfers Sukra Bahadur Rai, Bhuvan Nagarkoti, Bhu Bahadur Gurung, Jayaram Shrestha, along with amateur Rahul Bishwakarma, shared the top position with an even-par score of 69.
Sanjay Lama is in sixth place with a score of 1-over 70, Ramesh Adhikari is seventh with 2-over 71, and Bhuvan Kumar Rokka holds eighth place with 3-over 72. Ravi Khadka and Pradeep Kumar Lama, both scoring 4-over 73, share ninth place.
At the Himalayan Golf Course, Sukra completed the front nine holes in 2-over 36. He bogeyed the 1st, 3rd, 6th, and 7th holes but saved strokes on the 5th and 9th holes. On the back nine, he played a careful 2-under 33, with a lost stroke on the 15th hole but birdies on the 10th, 14th, and 17th holes.
Bhuvan, who won the last two tournaments, finished the front nine even-par 34, maintaining par on the first nine holes. He also completed the back nine in even-par 35. He birdied on the 10th and 13th holes but bogeyed the 11th and 12th holes, resulting in a total of 14 holes played at par.
Local Pokhara golfer Bhu Bahadur also scored even-par 34 on the front nine and even-par 35 on the back nine. He birdied the 3rd hole and bogeyed the 7th. Later, he bogeyed the 12th and 16th holes and birdied the 10th and 15th holes.
Jayaram started his day with a bogey but birdied the 5th and 9th holes, completing the front nine in 1-under 33. He bogeyed the 16th hole and finished the back nine in 1-over 36.
Amateur Rahul completed the front nine in even-par 34 and the back nine in even-par 35. He saved strokes on the 1st and 17th holes but bogeyed the 9th and 10th holes. Rahul leads the amateur category by 5 strokes. Prajwal Gurung stands second at 5-over 74, while Kavi Thapa is third with an 8-over 77.
The tournament, organized by the Nepal Professional Golfers Association (NPGA), features 26 professional and 16 amateur players competing over three days for 54 holes. A cut will be made after the second day, and the top 18 professionals and amateurs will move on to play the final 18 holes.
Sponsored by Surya Nepal Pvt. Ltd., the prize pool has been increased to NPR 1,050,000. The winner will take home NPR 170,000 in cash. The second and third place finishers will receive NPR 125,000 and NPR 100,000 respectively. Other top 18 professional players will also receive cash prizes.
The competition will conclude with a Pro-Am event on Saturday.
