New PGTI event Bengal Open Golf C'ship tees off

KOLKATA: TATA Steel Professional Golf Tour of India (TATA Steel PGTI), the official sanctioning body of professional golf in India, Monday launched a new event, the Bengal Open Golf Championship 2019 Presented by West Bengal Tourism and Powered By Tollygunge Club.

The tournament, carrying a prize purse of Rs 3 million, teed off at the historic Tollygunge Club in Kolkata Tuesday and runs through till March 15.

The Pro-Am event will be held on March 16.

The 2019 TATA Steel PGTI season’s fourth tournament, which has 126 golfers competing, including 123 professionals and three amateurs, is supported by Department of Tourism, government of West Bengal, powered by Tollygunge Club and news partner WION.

Besides India’s leading professionals, the field also features professionals from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

The top Indian professionals in the fray include SSP Chawrasia (four-time European Tour winner), Rahil Gangjee (a winner on the Japan Golf Tour & Asian Tour), Viraj Madappa (India’s youngest winner on the Asian Tour), Rashid Khan (two-time Asian Tour winner), Aman Raj, Chiragh Kumar, Udayan Mane and Karandeep Kochhar, to name a few.

Incidentally, all the three leading players in the field, SSP Chawrasia, Rahil Gangjee and Viraj Madappa, call Kolkata their home.

The foreign challenge is led by the Sri Lankan trio of Anura Rohana, N Thangaraja and Mithun Perera as well as Bangladesh’s Md Zamal Hossain Mollah.

Uttam Singh Mundy, CEO, PGTI, said: “The city of Kolkata has had a rich golfing legacy and has made a huge contribution to Indian golf having produced many world-class players. The TATA Steel PGTI therefore looks forward to its return to Kolkata after over a year with the staging of the inaugural Bengal Open. We thank Department of Tourism, Govt of West Bengal and Tollygunge Club for supporting our initiative of launching this event. The tournament seeks to promote Kolkata as a popular golfing destination which will in turn contribute towards boosting tourism in the state of West Bengal. The stellar field which features some of India’s leading names makes for a fascinating week of golfing action.”

Capt Ravi Dey, golf captain, Tollygunge Club, said: “We are very pleased to host the TATA Steel PGTI during the inaugural Bengal Open Golf Championship. The tournament promises to be a great experience for our club members who will get to witness India’s top golfing stars in action. We wish the TATA Steel PGTI the very best for this event and the future.”
     
Tollygunge Club’s 18-hole, par-70, 100-acre championship golf course is designed by internationally reputed golf architects. The all season course is rich in challenge and natural appeal. It caters to different skill levels and provides fresh insights on every visit. The dedicated staff, modern equipment and the underground irrigation system maintain the course in top condition through the year. The golf course is an oasis of green nested in the heart of urban Kolkata.