KATHMANDU, April 25: Anura Rohana clinched the Surya Nepal Masters 2009 title with an eagle on the final hole. This was his maiden professional win. [break]
Rohana carded a three-under 69 in the final round, for an overall score of 12-under 276, two shots ahead of his compatriot and overnight leader Mithun Perera, who returned a card of even-par 72 to finish at ten-under 278 for the tournament.
Rohana pursed Rs 405,000 with the win at the Gokarna Golf resort on Saturday. Parera clinched the amateur title.
Kunal Bhasin finished in third position, one clear of last year’s winner, Shamim Khan, who finished with a four-day total of six-under 282.
Nepali pro Deepak Thapa Magar led the Nepali contingent, carding a total of three-under 285 and finishing tied for sixth place. Bhasin walked away with a prize purse of RS 280,000 while Shamim Khan won RS 157,500 for his effort. Thapa Magar went home with RS 90,000.
The winners were felicitated with cash prizes and trophies by President Dr Ram Baran Yadav.
Rohana’s start wasn’t an auspicious one, for he made a double-bogey at the opening hole; Perera, on the other hand, hit his second shot close to the pin and tapped in a birdie that put him four in front. But, by the time Perera, a 22-year-old amateur, reached the fifth hole, he already had more bogeys on his card than he had had in his first three rounds.
Kunal Bhasin, the third member of the leading trio, then made three consecutive birdies to move to within one shot of the two leaders, who were at eight-under for the tournament after eight holes.
But Perera shook off his nerves and found his rhythm once again as he too made three straight birdies to pull ahead. By the time the players reached the 15th hole, it was clearly a two-horse race, as Bhasin could not add to his tally of birdies.
The par-5 15th hole was undoubtedly a turning point as Rohana saved par after finding water from the tee, while Perera bogeyed after his third shot went over the green.
Rohana and Perera were still tied for the lead at ten-under as they walked down the 18th fairway. Perera hit second shot to within 15 feet from the pin, and left himself with a chance for birdie.
Faced with a tricky 54-yard shot, Rohana calmly measured the distance to the pin, took his time and hit a bump-and-run shot, which pitched short of the green and after three bounces found the bottom of the cup. That was good enough for Rohana to bag his first title.
Perera stole the limelight from the professionals but he rued his coming up just short. “I just did not play that well today. It was a great experience for me, but I was disappointed not to have done well on the final day,” Perera said.
For Rohana, one hole in the four rounds of his winning performance stood out. “For me, more important than the eagle on the final hole was the par on the 15th. That is where I won the title,” he said.
It was a grand finish for Nepal’s only international golf tournament, and with the tantalizing drama that played out from the first hole to the last, the people who had come to follow the action on the final day did not go home disappointed.
