Viraj Madappa
Viraj Madappa, the 23-year-old from Bangalore, claimed a starting spot in the lucrative US$ 5mn Saudi International by winning the 36-hole qualifier by 4 shots, shooting 66-68 at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club.
The starting field in Saudi now includes 7 Indians – Shubhankar Sharma, Khalin Joshi, Chikkarangappa, Viraj, Rashid Khan, Veer Ahlawat and Shiv Kapur.
Khalin Joshi, the only other Indian playing the qualifier, shot 70-76 (2-over 146) to finish tied-14th, but also made it into the main tournament.
Rashid Khan, Shiv Kapur and Veer Ahlawat, qualified directly by finishing inside the top-30 of the 2021 Asian Tour Order of Merit. Chikkarangappa S is also in the field, as is Shubhankar Sharma. Aside from Sharma and Kapur, who have played in the majors, this will be the largest purse the other 5 Indian golfers have ever played for. We wish them all the best.
The Saudi international will see big names from the PGA Tour teeing it up including past winner Dustin Johnson, World No 1` Jon Rahm and many others.
Credits:-
Photo – Viraj Madappa/span>