Mumbai Aces’ teenage star Kartik Singh on his way to a shared point in the singles against Jhared Hack of Naya Raipur on day one of 72 The League at the Classic GCC near Manesar on Tuesday. Image courtesy DP World PGTI.
By Rahul Banerji
Rajasthan Regals made a flying start to their 72 The League campaign, finishing their match against Kolkata Classics unbeaten at the Classic Golf and Country Club near Manesar on Tuesday.
Ajeetesh Sandhu’s men won both their singles, the foursomes and Akshay Sharma and Jairaj Singh Sandhu held the strong pairing of Khalin Joshi and Angad Cheema to a tie in the fourballs, the DP World PGTI said.
The foursomes was a good win for the Regals, as Chikkarangappa S. and Dhruv Sheoran beat Rashid Khan and Ajay Baisoya 3&2, despite losing two of the first six holes.
But much of the attention was on 16-year-old Kartik Singh, who gave Mumbai Aces a stunning start, holding in-form US golfer Jhared Hack of Nava Raipur to a half in their singles match.
Singh was in fact 1 down after 15 holes before levelling with a birdie on 16.
The tension on 18 was intense with good tee shots by both players.
Hack, who recently shot a 59 on a DP World PGTI event in Chattisgarh, then hit his second shot on the par-5 hole to 12 feet, ratcheting up the pressure on Singh.
Telling riposte
However, Singh responded in wonderful fashion, hitting his second shot from 210 yards to 16 feet. He missed his eagle putt, but so did Hack to tie the match.
“Obviously, I would have liked to make the putt on the last hole and win, but I’m really happy that I was able to halve the match. It was a really tough match,” said Singh, who turned professional last year.
“He didn’t really give me many chances to go up because he was playing very consistently today. I made six birdies, but it felt like every time I would make a birdie, he would do the same.
“I felt really proud that I was chosen by my team for the singles, because singles are the first ones to tee off and the first match definitely sets the pace for the day.”
Regals captain Sandhu said after the day’s action that saw his team top the league standings, “It was very pleasing. Very happy with the result.
“I think we had a good plan going into today and we executed accordingly. That was our goal and I’m really glad that we were able to pull through.
“We spoke last night and eventually, it was a bit of a mix and match. A couple of the guys got along immediately, and we knew that was a strong pairing to go ahead with.
Mix and match
“Some of the guys were feeling good about their games and they wanted to play singles. I think every team is trying to figure things out as they go.”
Rajasthan’s K. Prabagaran posted the first win in the League’s history when he beat veteran Mukesh Kumar 5&4.
The Sri Lankan, winner of the 2006 All-India Amateur Championship, won the third and fourth holes with birdies and never looked back.
“I really enjoy playing singles, and I thought I did very well against Mukesh. I made some very good putts and drove the ball OK. It’s a proud moment for me that I scored the first point of the new league,” said Prabagaran.
The day’s last match, a fourball between Nava Raipur’s Shivendra Singh Sisodia and Mohammed Azhar against Tapendra Ghai and Kushal Singh of Mumbai Aces could not be completed because of darkness.
The two pairs will return to the course on Monday, when the tournament comes back to the Nuh venue.
The second round will be played on Tuesday at Jaypee Greens Golf Course in Noida.
Rajasthan Regals take on Hyderabad’s Charminar Champions, while Kolkata Classics face Mumbai Aces and UP Prometheans meet Nava Raipur.
League standings after round 1
Rajasthan Regals – 13 points
UP Prometheans – 8 points
Nava Raipur – 8 points*
Charminar Champions – 5 points
Mumbai Aces – 2 points*
Kolkata Classics – 1 point
(* denotes unfinished match)
Also read: Rajasthan take on Kolkata in PGTI’s 72 The League opener
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