ROUND 1
ROUND 2
ROUND 3
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Jaipur, May 2, 2009: Gaganjeet Bhullar won his second professional title when he edged out Himmat Singh Rai in a playoff at the PGTI Players Championship presented by Rambagh Golf Club. The two players headed into a playoff after they finished the regulation 72 holes with matching totals of 10 under 270. Rashid Khan and Vikrant Chopra were tied third as they finished two strokes behind Bhullar and Rai.

Gaganjeet Bhullar (73, 67, 65, 65) shot a bogey-free 65 to climb from overnight tied fifth to the winner’s podium on Saturday. The final round turned out to be a battle between two 21-year-olds, Bhullar and Rai, both of whom had also registered their maiden professional wins earlier this year. Even as overnight leader Raju Ali Mollah slipped after dropping a number of strokes at the very outset, Gaganjeet and Himmat made a move up the leaderboard.

Bhullar was consistent on the front nine, making eight pars and a solitary birdie on the eighth. He turned on the heat on the back nine as he sank birdies on the 10th, 13th, 16th and 17th. The Kapurthala-based professional made an incredible birdie on the par three 13th where he hit his six-iron tee shot to within 10 feet of the pin despite encountering headwind. Bhullar played the playoff hole (18th) to perfection as he hit the green in two on the par five 18th and then made a two putt from about 30 feet to make birdie and win.

“I didn’t have a good start this week but in the last two rounds I felt I was in total control of my game. I knew that it would be a tough contest against Himmat towards the end since the two of us have played a lot of junior golf together. But, I guess I came through today because my mental toughness and technical skills are improving every week with my good performances on the Asian Tour and in other international events such as the British Open Qualifying,” said Bhullar.

He added, “Even when Himmat made a great recovery on the 18th to take it to a playoff, I was confident of winning and was totally focused on my goal. This victory has now given me a huge boost for the forthcoming events.”

Himmat Singh Rai (66, 71, 67, 66) was the leader for most part of the final round. He made the turn at four under after firing birdies on the first, second, sixth, eighth, ninth and dropping a lone bogey on the third. The Delhi golfer then allowed Bhullar to catch up on the back nine as he not only made birdies on the 10th, 15th, 17th, but also conceded bogeys on the 11th, 12th and 16th.

Himmat said, “I played well for most part of my round today but then also made a few errors that proved to be quite costly, especially a couple of bad shots on the 11th and 12th. I recovered really well from the bunker on the 18th to take the match to a playoff but subsequently had a bad lie in the bunker on the playoff hole. I felt I was a little indecisive at that point and that’s what led to my missing the up and down for birdie.”

Rashid Khan (67, 65, 74, 66) and Vikrant Chopra (69, 68, 66, 69) shared third place at eight under 272. Rashid Khan also won the amateur title as he finished with the best score among all the amateurs in the field.

Arjun Singh, Mohd Siddikur Rahman and Raju Ali Mollah were tied fifth at six under 274.

Jaipur’s Vishal Singh (66, 73, 68, 70) ended the tournament in tied 10th place at three under 277. Mukesh Kumar was 17th at one under 279.

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