Ahmedabad Masters from Wednesday

January 28, 2014: Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI), ‘the official sanctioning body of professional golf in India’, will begin its 2014 season with the PGTI Ahmedabad Masters presented by Kalhaar Blues & Greens. The tournament carrying a prize purse of Rs. 50 lac will be staged from January 29 – February 1, 2014, at the Kalhaar Blues & Greens golf course in Ahmedabad, one of India’s premier championship courses. The Pro-Am event will be played on February 2, 2014.

[highlight] The tournament carrying a prize purse of Rs. 50 lac will be staged from January 29 – February 1, 2014, at the Kalhaar Blues & Greens golf course in Ahmedabad [/highlight]

The event marks the beginning of the newly-launched seven-event PGTI Super Series for 2014. The seven events of the PGTI Super Series will carry a total prize purse of Rs. 3.5 crore. Points will be allocated for each event of the Super Series. The player with the highest points at the end of the seven Super Series events stands to earn a bonus of Rs. 30 lac.

Top Indian professionals including Anirban Lahiri, who finished third on the 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit, SSP Chowrasia (two-time winner on the European Tour), Asian Tour regulars Himmat Singh Rai, Rahil Gangjee, Digvijay Singh, Chiragh Kumar and 2013 Rolex Rankings champion Rashid Khan, among others, will lead the field in PGTI’s first-ever event in Gujarat.

Announcing the event, Mr. Padamjit Sandhu, Director, PGTI, said, “We look forward to making our debut in Gujarat and showcasing the best of Indian professional golf to a new audience. We seek to build on our partnership with the Navratna Group in an effort to promote the sport in Ahmedabad and the rest of Gujarat. With a strong line-up of professionals vying for an impressive prize purse, we expect an exciting week of golf.”

The Kalhaar Blues & Greens is a world-class championship course developed by the Navratna Group and designed by ‘Nicklaus Design’, a company owned by the legendary golfer Jack Nicklaus. The course complies with the United States Golf Association (USGA) specifications. The par-72 course is spread over 175 acres and plays to 7425 yards from the championship tees, making it the longest golf course in India. The layout offers unique challenges such as sand and beach bunkers and 14 water bodies. The course also features a scenic ‘Island green’ on Hole No. 7 – a 174 yards, Par-3.