Chandigarh golfer Harendra finishes tied second; Vinod emerges victorious

It was disappointment for Chandigarh golfer Harendra Gupta as he slipped to second spot on the final day after gaining the lead in the third round in the PGTI Players's Championship which concluded at Aamby Valley Golf Course, Lonavala, Maharashtra.

The Chandigarh golfer shared the second spot with Arshdeep Tiwana with a score of eight-under-280. Delhi's Vinod Kumar saved his best for the last as he fired a bogey-free two-under-70 to win the title. Vinod finished with a tournament total of nine-under-279.

Vinod Kumar (70-69-70-70) started the final round in tied second place and soon established himself as one of the main contenders for the title. He made a phenomenal par-save on the par-5 third hole where he first found the fairway bunker and then the hazard.

The 32 year-old recovered well on the third with a brilliant chip from behind the bunker that landed within a couple of feet of the flag. Vinod made his move up the leaderboard with a 20-feet birdie putt conversion on the sixth. The professional from the Delhi Golf Club earned his second birdie of the day on the 13th where his well-directed approach shot landed six feet from the hole.

However, Vinod was disappointed to miss birdie putts from five feet on the 12th and 14th. The short and stocky Vinod did well to make par on the par-3 15th which had the day's toughest pin position.

Shamim Khan had stumbled to an eight (five-over) on the 15th after hitting it out of bounds twice and then finding the hazard. Shamim's title hopes were dashed on the 15th. Harendra Gupta also dropped a bogey on the same hole.

Vinod saved par in a pressure situation once again when he sank a 15 feet putt on the 16th. He went on to make pars on the last two holes as well to seal his second title on the PGTI. His win at the Rs. 40 lakh event made him richer by Rs. 6,46,600 and took him from 22nd place to 11th position on the 2012 Rolex Rankings.

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