Gaganjeet Bhullar’s sensational late charge could not topple Thaworn Wiratchant and the in-form Indian finished second best in the Macau Open golf tournament here on Sunday.
After rounds of 71, 69 and 69, Bhullar fired a five-under 66 in the final round to aggregate nine-under 275 but Wiratchant’s final round of 68 helped the Thai stalwart amble to his 11th Asian Tour title with a commanding six-shot triumph.
Digvijay Singh (287) signed off with 73 to finish tied 43rd, three shots ahead of fellow Indian C Muniyappa (77), who finished tied 56th in the $500,000 full field Asian Tour event.
Winner of the Indonesia President Invitational this season, Bhullar opened his round brilliantly with a birdie and an eagle followed by another birdie on his opening three holes.
However, with Thaworn in fine form, the Indian tipped his hat to the Thai for his fantastic victory.
“I had a good trot and that gave me a lot of boost. I was having a look at Thaworn’s score but he was way in front of me and I didn’t think I could catch him,” said Bhullar.
“I played well today so I can imagine how he has been playing the whole week. He is our Asian hero and I look up to him for his achievement on the Asian Tour,” he added.
Looking back, Bhullar reckons it was his level-par first round, which cost him the title.
“Today was much better compared to what I have played over the last three days. But this week I have been hitting the ball very well. My putts were falling and I was hitting it close. I had a good trot and that gave me a lot of boost,” he said.
“Throughout the week my game was fine except for the first day where I was four-under after nine holes but finished even-par,” said the Kapurthala pro.
