In the 18-hole semifinals, Ram Thapa upset fellow RNGC pro Shiva Ram Shrestha 3/2, while Dharan pro Mani Rai rallied for a 1/0 victory over Deepak Neupane in the tournament organized by Nepal Professional Golfers Association (NPGA). [break]
Thapa had a relatively easy outing despite playing against title favorite Shrestha as the veteran pro defeated the former Nepal No 1 pro with two holes to spare.
Thapa took the lead from the first hole with a par putt after Shrestha carded a bogey. Shrestha leveled the scores in the third hole with a par and took lead on the fifth hole after Thapa struggled with bogeys. The scores were level on the sixth hole after Shrestha hit a bogey and Thapa saved par. Thapa then went ahead on the ninth hole with a par putt after Shrestha hit a bogey.
On the back nine, Thapa won the 11th and 12th holes to go three-up after Shrestha found water hazard and bunker respectively. Shrestha was forced to pick the ball on both the holes after Thapa´s approach shots put him on strong positions to save pars. The remaining four holes -- 13 to 16 -- were halved as Thapa won the match with two holes remaining.
In the other semi-final match, Rai trailed Neupane for most of the round but managed to win the match with late charge. After drawing the first three holes, Neupane went one ahead on the fourth hole after Rai hit a bogey and Neupane managed a par. Rai was two-down on the seventh hole on similar fashion before pulling his first victory on the ninth hole with a birdie.
Neupane regained the two-hole lead on the 10th with a birdie, while Rai reduced the deficit on the 12th hole after Neupane suffered a double bogey. Rai charged back to level the scores on the 15th hole with a par after Neupane hit a bogey. He then went one-up on the 16th hole with a par putt after Neuapne hit another bogey. Rai held on to the lead on the last two holes to advance to the final.
Out of the total cash purse of Rs 200,000, the winner will be richer by Rs 50,000, while the runner up will receive Rs 30,000. The top 16 pros based on last season´s Order of Merit took part in the seventh event under the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2010-11.
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