Top 10 finish for Udayan Mane

Report by Anand Datla

September 28, 2014: A strong finish saw Udayan Mane edge inside the top ten at the 17th Asian Games in Incheon. The Indian golfer shot a fine 69 on Sunday to tie in seventh with local hope Eunho Youm. The Korean was one behind the lead on Saturday, but a bundle of nerves took hold of his frail soul and destroyed any hope of a medal. Youm slipped badly to score a 76 and join Mane in seventh. Taipei’s Cheng Tsung Pan finished at 17-under 271 to win the individual gold. Korean Namhun Kim won the silver and Chun An Yu, also from Taipei won the bronze medal. Manu Gandas shot 71 in the final round to finish just outside the top ten and a 73 from Feroz Garewal saw him finish in a three way tie for 19th place.

Among the women, Gurbani Singh was the best Indian of the Asian Games. She finished 3-over 291, with a 74 in the final round helping her complete the event in 15th place. Ashok Aditi was 21st and Astha Madan was 24th in the individual standings. Korean Gyeol Park won the gold at 19-under 269. Budsabakorn Sukapan of Thailand won the silver medal, after finishing just one shot behind Park. Supamas Sangchan, also from Thailand, won the bronze medal, a further four shots behind her compatriot.

In the men’s team event, Taipei obviously was too strong among the men. The four men from Taipei were a combined 45-under for the four rounds, with an overall score of 819.  Korea finished second, seven behind Taipei to take the silver medal. Thailand were a further seven back, pipping China to the bronze by just two strokes. Indian men – Udayan Mane, Manu Gandas, Feroz Garewal and Samarth Dwivedi – combined for a 25-under score of 839 to finish behind Japan in sixth place.

In the women’s team event, Thailand scored an impressive 38-under 538 to win the gold medal. Korean were seven strokes off the leading pace – 31-under 545 to clinch the silver medal. China took the bronze medal with a score of 17-under 559. With every Indian woman finishing well over par, our team finished in eighth with a total score of 11-over 587.