FLORIDA
All of just 22, Saptak Talwar of New Delhi and a senior at Sacred Heart University in Connecticut, became the first Indian ever to earn playing rights on the PGA Tour Canada – Mackenzie Tour.
Saptak shot 69-74-67-69 (9-under, 279) to finish tied-4th at the First Indian qualifies for PGA Tour Canada Mackenzie Tour Qualifying Tournament played out at Mission Inn Club & Resort, Florida from March 1-5, 2021.
Saptak Talwar (a) finished T-4 with 9-under 279
The qualifier offered only six spots onto the main tour and Saptak’s scores ensured him full playing rights on the tour. Talking about his week, he said, “I am super grateful to be a member of the 2021 PGA Tour Canada, Mackenzie Tour. I have been dreaming of becoming a professional golfer since a very young age (started golf at 5) and to start the journey at such a prestigious tour is truly unbelievable and I cannot wait for the season to start. “
The 2018 North East Conference college tournament winner, Saptak, the son of Mr Rajiv Talwar, a lawyer by profession, who founded the IJGA Academy in Gurgaon and co-found the Albatross Junior Tour in India added, “I have a lot of people to thank for my journey so far, no one more than my parents and my sister who have continued to support me from day 1 through all the ups and downs. The junior golf platform provided by Albatross Junior Tour was very crucial in my grooming process and then moving to International Junior Golf Academy (IJGA) in 2017 allowed me to pursue Division 1 collegiate golf at Sacred Heart University. “
Saptak had special words for his coach, “My coach at Sacred Heart, Matt McGreevy for providing such a healthy environment for my growth.”
The average prize fund of an event on the Canadian Tour is CAN$ 200,000 and the road from there to the PGA Tour is a long one, needing a player to finish in top-5 at the end of the year to earn rights on the Korn Ferry Tour, a second rung tour to the main tour. From there Saptak has to finish on the Top-25 of the Korn Ferry Tour’s Order of Merit to be able to earn a card on the PGA Tour. As of now, there have been 17 winners on the PGA Tour, who took the Canadian Tour route and a few notable among them are – Adam Hadwin, Tony Finau and Nick Taylor.