Surya Nepal NPGA Tour Championship begins at Gokarna Pro Bhuvan shares lead with amateur Rahul

KATHMANDU: Former top pro Bhuvan Nagarkoti and amateur Rahul Bishwakarma shared the lead after first round of Surya Nepal NPGA Tour Championship, the sixth event under Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2023-24, at the Gokarna Golf Club on Monday.

Bhuvan and Rahul carded 3-under 69 on the first day and they are one stroke ahead of four golfers.

Three pros Ramesh Adhikari, Rabi Khadka and Niraj Tamang are tied for third along with amateur Vijay Shrestha Einhaus. They carded 2-under 70.

Amateur Sadbhav Acharya is seventh at 1-under 71, while Yubraj Bhujel, Jayram Shrestha, Sanjay Lama and Bal Bhadra Rai are tied for eighth at even-par 72.

Bhuvan took the turn at even-par 36 and carded 3-under 33 on the back nine. He started the day with a bogey but recovered with birdies on the second, fifth and seventh holes. Bhuvan then shot an Out of Bounds (OB) on the ninth to settle for a double bogey. He carded four birdies on the 10th, 11th, 15th and 17th holes and faced a lone bogey on the 13th hole.

National team member Rahul carded a bogey-free 3-under 33 on the front nine with the help of birdies on the first, fourth and sixth holes. After taking the turn, he dropped a shot on the 12th and carded a birdie on the 15th for even-par 36 on the back nine.

Ramesh bounced back on the back nine carding 4-under 32 after he took the turn at 2-over 38. He began the day with a bogey and suffered a double bogey on the seventh hole against a birdie on the third hole. On the bogey-free back nine, Ramesh sank an eagle on the 15th hole and carded birdies on the 16th and 17th holes.

Former top pro Rabi carded 1-under 35 on both halves. He also began the day with a bogey before carding birdies on the sixth and seventh holes. On the back nine, he faced a bogey on the 11th and carded birdies on the 15th and 18th holes.

Dharan pro Niraj also carded 1-under 35 on both halves. He carded birdies on the third, ninth, 13th and 18th holes and dropped shots on the seventh and 15th holes.

Amateur golfer Vijay carded 3-under 33 on the front nine and played 1-over 37 on the back nine. He carded four birdies on the first, third, fifth and sixth holes before facing the first bogey of the day on the ninth hole. He then carded a birdie on the 10th hole and dropped shots on the 16th and 17th holes.

Pro Toran Shahi pulled out of the tournament before the tee off. A total of 44 golfers — 32 pros and 12 amateurs — are taking part in the tournament organised by the PGA Nepal under the sponsorship of Surya Nepal Pvt Ltd. Cut will be applied after the second round and top 21 pros and amateurs surviving the pro cut will progress to the final two rounds. The tournament carries a cash purse of Rs 840,000.

The winner of the event will bag Rs 140,000, the runner-up will earn Rs 96,000 and the third placed pro will get Rs 72,000. Other pros in top 21 will earn prize money.