8 time Asian Tour winner presenting a medal to Jai Bahl (Boys 13-14 winner)
Golf in India took a major step towards the next level with the successful staging of U.S. Kids Golf India Tour’s first event at the Jack Nicklaus designed Classic Golf & Country Club here on Friday.
The response belied expectations as 71 participants across 13 categories teed off at this championship course, which has staged top-ticket professional events like the Indian Open and SAIL Open in the past.
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The enthusiasm was infectious as kids as young as seven years teed off on a crisp but chilly winter morning. The effort bore fruit as Anushka Gupta emerged champion among girls seven and under. Chaitanya Gupta won in boys seven and under.
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Winners in other categories were Ayesha Gupta in Girls 8-9 years, Lavanya Gupta in Girls 10-11 years, Ragini Navet in Girls 12-14 years, Khushi Dawar in Girls 15-18 years, Chaitanya Pandey in Boys 7 years, Sohang Har Kantor in Boys 8 years, Bhavesh Nirwan in Boys 9 years, Udai Aditya Middha in Boys 10 years, Kushagra Tokas in Boys 11 years, Vickram Baruah in Boys 12 years and Aaryomaan Bose in Boys 15-18 years.
Renowned professional golfer Jyoti Randhawa, who was present to encourage the children, lauded the effort to take golf to the grassroots. “In my days, there were hardly any junior tournaments and very little competition. So this endeavor from U.S. Kids Golf is very encouraging,” he said.
Rajesh Srivastava, President, U.S. Kids Golf India said, “U.S. Golf Kids India has been formed with the real cause of promoting junior golf in the country. It was amazing to see the talent on display today and we couldn’t have been happier with the way that the U.S. Golf Kids India Tour has kicked off.
The U.S. Kids Golf India Tour 2018-19 edition will be played across various age groups for boys, starting from age 6 & under till 18, as well as girls, from age 7 & under till 18.
Subsequent events will be held at some of the finest courses in India, including Tollygunge Club (Kolkata), Eagleton Golf Resort (Bengaluru), Boulder Hills Golf and Country Club (Hyderabad), Chandigarh Golf Club and Poona Club Golf Course (Pune), apart from including Classic Golf & Country Club (Delhi NCR), which between them have held numerous national and international professional golf tournaments.
Winners: U.S. Kids Golf India Tour (Winter 2018-19), 7th December 2018
| Category | Winner |
| Boys 7 | Chaitanya Gupta |
| Boys 8 | Sohang Har Kantor |
| Boys 9 | Bhavesh Nirwan |
| Boys 10 | Udai Aditya Middha |
| Boys 11 | Kushagra Tokas |
| Boys 12 | Vickram Baruah |
| Boys 13-14 | Jai Bahl |
| Boys 15-18 | Aaryomaan Bose |
| Girls 7 & under | Anushka Gupta |
| Girls 8-9 | Ayesha Gupta |
| Girls 10-11 | Lavanya Gupta |
| Girls 12-14 | Ragini Navet |
| Girls 15-18 | Khushi Dawar |