Prabagaran steals Golconda show

Report by Anand Datla

February 26, 2015: On a bright sunny day, with the historic Golconda Fort bearing witness, K Prabagaran produced a stunning 8-under 62 on the first day of the Golconda Masters in Hyderabad. The Lankan impressed with a terrific performance to steal the show in the first round, outshining Shamim Khan, who posted a 63. Anura Rohana was also lying second after making a 63 on his march around the course.

At the par-4 5th and 6th holes, Prabagaran made consecutive eagles to set up his flight to the top of the leaderboard. The only blemish of his day came at the 13th hole, where he took bogey with a five. But he made amends almost immediately, with consecutive birdies on the next two holes.

“It was an outstanding round. My driving and approach shots were brilliant. I also got myself out of trouble on a couple of occasions after hitting it over the green. It’s the first time I’ve made two consecutive eagles. This round has really lifted my confidence for the rest of the week,” said Prabagaran, who finished 10th in the 2014 Rolex Rankings with a win and eight other top10 finishes.

He added, “One needs to be very accurate on certain stretches of this course which are narrow. The fourth in particular is a very challenging hole. There are times when you can’t see the fairways from the tees so judging the distance well is the key here. I had a good 2014 season on the PGTI which has done wonders to my confidence. I want to perform a few notches higher this year.”

Among the early starters, Khan enjoyed the lead for much of the day before conceding the honour to the 34 year old Lankan. Khan made an eagle at the sixth and three birdies on either side of his run to produce a well composed 63.

Incidentally, Rohana also made eagle at the sixth hole. The 41 year old Lankan golfer seemed keen to make amends for the missed cut he suffered at the Hemisphere PGTI Masters, earlier this month. He shot seven birdies and an eagle in his round of seven under par 63.

Ashbeer Saini and Karan Taunk shot 65 to tie in fifth position, while Ranjit Singh signed off on a 66 to finish the first day in the sixth spot. Five others shot 67 to round out the top ten and ties.

Trishul Chinnappa shot 68 to finish the day in a creditable T12 on the strength of a solid round of golf. Chinnappa made six birdies in his round, but also gave away two bogeys and a double at the fourth hole.

Gaganjeet Bhullar could not get his boat sailing too far as he settled for an even par 70. Playing alongside him were Shankar Das and Chikkarangappa, who both finished with 68. With the top 50 and ties allowed through to the weekend, the cut is expected to fall just a few shots over par tomorrow.