Nishna Patel finishes tied-2nd, one-shot behind the winner in Philippines
16-year-old Nishna Patel from Mumbai showed great form, shooting rounds of 74-70-69, to secure a tied-2nd position alongside the Thai duo of Pimpisa Rubrong and Prim Prachakorn at the Asia-Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC) Junior Championship in Manila, Philippines.
Avani Prashanth, the other Indian in the field shot 73-73-72 (2-over 218) to finish tied-8th at the tournament. Notably, Avani had recently emerged as the dominant champion in Manila at the Asia Pacific Ladies Amateur Championship (Queen Sirikit Cup), triumphing by an impressive 10 strokes against a formidable lineup that included four players ranked within the top 20 worldwide. Her previous victory in February positioned her as a strong contender to build upon her success in the current event.
Nishna’ total score of 3-under 213 fell just one shot short of Arianna Lau from Hong Kong, who carded 73-70-69 (4-under 212) and clinched the title at Orchard Golf & Country Club.
In the Boys category, Jujjhar Singh shot 78-74-69 (5-over 221) to finish tied-6th, followed by Sukhman Singh who shot 78-78-75 (15-over 231) for a tied-18th position in Manila, Philippines.
In the teams category, India 2, consisting of Nishna Patel and Jujjhar Singh, finished a creditable tied-4th along with Thailand.
Team India 1 consisting of Avani Prashanth and Sukhman Singh scored 151-151-147 (17-over 449) to finish 11th in the tournament.
The APGC Junior Championships allowed players who were 17 years or under as of May 16 to participate, marking the event’s return after a hiatus since 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The championship, which is the region’s premier team and individual event for boys and girls, featured top junior players from 11 APGC member nations, as well as two strong teams representing the European Golf Association (EGA). The format of the championship is stroke play, mixed gender team competition, where teams consist of one male and one female player from each country, and the aggregate gross score of both players counts as the team’s score.
Among notables to have competed in the APGC Junior Championships are the last two winners of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC), Japan’s Keita Nakajima and Australian Harrison Crowe.
Credits:-
Photo – IGU