AHMEDABAD: The first leg of the Hero Women's Professional Golf Tour 2017, featuring India’s best golfers, teed off here at the Kalhaar Blues & Greens Wednesday.
The Rs600,000 event, featuring 11 professionals and a lone amateur, sees Panchkula’s Amandeep Drall, who won four times in 14 appearances last year, starting as the favourite.
Amandeep finished second in the Hero Order of Merit in 2016 with total earnings of Rs1,175,534.
Amandeep is facing stiff competition from Kolkata’s Neha Tripathi and Kapurthala’s Gursimar Badwal, who finished third and fourth respectively in the Order of Merit last year. Neha with two wins and Gursimar with one would be keen to better their performance and start the season with a win.
A notable absentee in the 1st leg is New Delhi’s Vani Kapoor, who won seven titles in 13 appearances last year, with total earnings of Rs1,255,150.
Trisha Sunil, who emerged as the Rookie of the Year in 2016 with total earnings of Rs244,150, is expected to give Amandeep, Neha and Gursimar a run for their money.
Others in the reckoning are Chandigarh’s Saaniya Sharma and Kolkata’s Smriti Mehra.
The first leg also sees Delhi's Sifat Alag make her debut on the Tour as an amateur.
The par 72 Kalhaar Blues & Greens golf course in Ahmedabad is reputed to be one of the finest golf courses in the country, and is all set to test the mettle of competitors.
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