Shubhankar Sharma of Delhi ended local challenger Viraj Madappa’s hopes beating the latter 3 and 2 in the matchplay final to lift the Tata Steel 112th amateur golf championship at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club on Sunday.
The win helped Sharma record his first victory on the Tata Steel IGU Amateur Tour.
Sharma and Madappa entered a keen contest matching each other stroke for stroke.
The first 18 holes saw Sharma making five birdies while Madappa fired four. Sharma ended the first half with a gross score of three-under par while the latter remained a little adrift with one-under par at the breather.
After the break, Madappa birdied in the 20th hole to reduce the margin to two-down but Sharma birdied in the 22nd hole (fourth hole of the course) to regain the three-up advantage. The see-saw battle continued as Madappa managed to catch up with Sharma by the 31st hole.
Sharma regained his form in time and made consecutive birdies on the 32nd and 33rd holes while Madappa managed pars to allow the former the decisive three-up lead.
“My driving was a bit of a problem and I worked on it at the range a day before the final. It came to good use as I hit the ball well in the match,” said the 16-year-old Sharma after the win.
Meanwhile, in the IGU Royal Trophy held for the members, Sunny Uthup won in the 0-14 category while S.S. Das and Harvinder Singh won the titles in the 15-18 and 19 & above handicap categories.
The result (36-hole final):
Shubhankar Sharma (3) bt Viraj Madappa (5) 3 and 2.
