KATHMANDU, January 1: Amateur golfer Rahul Bishwakarma defended the title of the Surya Nepal Central Open, first event under Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2025-26, at par-72 Gokarna Forest Golf Resort on Thursday.
Rahul carded 4-under 68 to post the 72-hole score of 14-under 274. He defeated pro Jayram Shrestha by 14 strokes to claim the third career title. He had won the Surya Nepal Central Open and Surya Nepal Premier Golf Championship in the previous season.
Jayram played 5-over 77 in the final round but that was enough for him to finish first among pros at even-par 288 and he claimed top prize of Rs 170,000. Pros Toran Bikram Shahi and Bhuvan Nagarkoti finished tied third at 2-over 290. Toran played even-par 72 and Bhuvan carded 4-under 68. Tied for second among pros, they earned Rs 112,500 each.
Nepal No 1 pro Niraj Tamang finished sixth overall and fifth among pros with total score of 3-over 291. He carded 3-under 69 and received Rs 82,000 as prize money. Three pros, Bhuwan Kumar Rokka (76), Sukra Bahadur Rai (74) and Dinesh Prajapati (74), and amateur Reuben Thapa finished tied for sixth at 292. The pros received Rs 64,333 each.
Reuben came second in amateur section after he carded 2-under 70 in the final round for total score of 292. Another amateur Sam Doublard carded 1-under 73 for total score of 8-over 296. He was third among amateurs and finished 10th overall. Tashi Ghale, who fired a Hole-In-One on fifth hole on the first day received Rs 5,000 for the achievement.
Rahul carded 3-under 33 on the front nine and he added 1-under 35 on the back nine. He began the day five strokes ahead of pro Jayram and he extended the lead to eight shots after front nine. Rahul carded four birdies on the second, third, eighth and ninth holes against a lone bogey on fifth hole. After the turn, Rahul made birdies on 12th and 15th holes before dropping a shot on the 17th hole.
Pro Jayram took the turn at even-par 36. He began the round with back-to-back birdies on the first and second holes before facing shots on the third and seventh holes. He endured a difficult back nine shooting 5-over 41 after he faced bogeys on the 10th, 12th, 14th, 15th and 16th holes.
Toran played even-par 36 on both halves. After saving pars on all nine holes of front nine, Toran carded birdies on the 10th, 12th and 14th holes. But he suffered a double bogey on the 15th and dropped a shot on the 18th hole. Bhuvan returned his best card of the tournament after he faced two bogeys on the eighth and 14th holes against six birdies on the first, third, fourth and final three holes. He carded 2-under 34 on both halves.
A total of 37 pros and 25 amateurs took part in the tournament. Deputy General Manager at Surya Nepal Pvt Ltd, Keshav Pradhan and Nepal Golf Association President Tashi Ghale handed over prizes to the winners. The second event of the season, Surya Nepal Eastern Open is slated for January 14-17 at Dharan Golf Club in Sunsari.
Comment