Mysuru teenage girl stands tall
Pranavi Urs
15-year-old Pranavi S. Urs beat Philippine lad Madcalayo Jolo Timothy to win the 11th Singha Thailand Junior World Golf Championship 2018. Played at Royal Hua Hin Golf Course from November 1-4, the Mysuru native won the Overall title a play-off. Pranavi posted scores of 74-71-74-75 for an overall score of 6-over-294 to clinch the Category ‘A’ Girls title. She and Anika Varma (aged 14) combined to finish third in the team event, posting an aggregate score of 602.
RELATED: Junior Golf: November 2018
Sunhit Bishnoi and Raghav Chugh
Meanwhile, Delhi lads Sunhit Bishnoi (aged 17) and Raghav Chugh (15) took home the winner’s title in the team category following their stellar performance. Bishnoi (77-76-73-69) finished second in the individual category, one shot behind Timothy. Chugh (77-78-75-66) shot a brilliant final round and secured T-3.
Bengaluru youngster taking rapid strides
Rishika Muralidhar
All of 12, Rishika Muralidhar continued to impress following some strong finishes this season. The Bengaluru youngster had capped off a memorable 2017, winning five of the seven tournaments she participated in.
Rishika commenced the year with a resounding 16-shot win at the IGU Rotary Karnataka Ladies and Junior Girls Golf Championship in April before recording two more wins (IGU Maharashtra and IGU Western India in May) besides one runner-up showing.
Late September, the young amateur triumphed in the IGU Delhi State NCR Junior Cup (September 24-28) held at Jaypee Greens Golf Course, Greater Noida by 10 strokes. She then secured her fifth title (from seven tournaments) at the IGU Gujarat Ladies and Junior Girls Golf Championship (October 1-4).
Rishika, who finished 17th in the U.S. Kids World Championship in Pinehurst
in August, is ranked No. 1 on the IGU Merit List (C Category).
Little Master Tour hosts India Qualifier
Dhairya Jain
Ahead of the Australian Junior Age Division Championship which will be played at Royal Pines Resort, Gold Coast, Queensland in April 2019, Little Master Junior Golf Tour organized the India Qualifier at Jaypee Wish Town, Noida. The event saw more than 35 youngsters take part.
Category Winner
Boys 17-18 Dhairya Jain
Boys 15-16 Rachit Poddar
Boys 13-14 Purnayush Mangal
Boys 11-12 Eakam Sayal
Boys 9-10 Shubham Kumar
Boys 7-8 Armin P. Singh
Girls 17-18 Amruta Das
Girls 13-14 Ragini Navet
Girls 6&Under Nanina Kapoor
Akshay Bhatia invited for Walker Cup practice session
Akshay Bhatia
The United States Golf Association’s (USGA) International Team Selection Committee selected 16 players who will attend a practice session from December 14-18 ahead of the 2019 Walker Cup. 16-year-old Akshay Bhatia of North Carolina is expected to partake in the activity.
Bhatia, whose parents hail from India, is the top-ranked junior golfer in the U.S. and received the AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year award during a banquet at PGA National on November 18.
Established in 1922, Walker Cup is a golf tournament contested in odd-numbered years by leading amateur golfers in the United States, and Great Britain and Ireland. It is named after George Herbert Walker, president of USGA in 1920. Walker is also the grandfather (and namesake) of George H.W. Bush and great-grandfather of George W. Bush, who were respectively the 41st and 43rd Presidents of United States of America.