KOCHI: After playing a delightful chip shot on hole 16 to get onto the green, Mukesh Kumar afforded himself a smile. The 49-year old knew then that he was in with a real chance of beating back the challenge from all youngsters around him to the prize of `8.25 Lakh on offer at the PGTI Cochin Masters.
On the final hole, the 18th, he kept his poise to recover well from the bushes and set himself up for a two-stroke conversion. As his immediate rivals Rahil Gangjee and Anura Rohana, of Sri Lanka, watched in resignation, Mukesh finished the tournament off with a 12-feet putt to bag his biggest prize money title to date.
For the grand veteran of Indian golf, the feat at the CIAL Golf and Country Club on Saturday marked the 120th win in a long and illustrious professional career that started way back in 1984, with his first win having come in 1989 as a 20-year old.
“This is an immensely satisfying victory. For a 49-year old like me, it is special to be winning a tournament which has so many young and rising players in the field,” said Kumar, respectfully called ‘Guruji’ by fellow players.
Lahiri Struggles
Doral: Anirban Lahiri shot four-over 76 to be tied at 70th position after the second round of the WGC-Cadillac Championships at the Blue Monster at the Trump National in Doral in Florida. He is now 12-over for 36 holes in the elite field.
Atwal Makes Cut
Rio Grande: Arjun Atwal playing his first PGA Tournament since September last year made the cut with a one-under 71 in the second round of the Puerto Rico Open on Friday. Also making the weekend action was Daniel Chopra (74-69) in tied 21st place.