The Royal Nepal Golf Club (RNGC) pro Shivaram Shrestha has established himself as an undisputed champion in the domestic circuit winning six of the eight events of the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2016-17.  

Shrestha’s domination is evident by the fact that he finished on top of the Order of Merit for the seventh consecutive season after clinching the season-ending Premier Golf Championship at the Gokarna Golf Course on Thursday. Rame Magar and Rabi Khadka were the only other two golfers apart from Shrestha to win a title this season. In a field of 41 professional golfers, the 33-year-old Shrestha earned a total of Rs 813,000 to top the Order of Merit.

Shrestha had topped the Order of Merit in the first Surya Nepal Golf Tour season in 2008-09 with five titles. He could not replicate the success the following season which ended without a single title. But the Nepal No 1 bounced back in the third season with six titles in 2010-11 season to top the chart again. Ever since he has never been challenged.

Apart from Premier Golf Championship, Shrestha won the Eastern Open, Surya Nepal Challenge, Western Open, Central Open and Tour Championship this season. Rame Magar clinched the Surya Nepal Kathmandu Open and Khadka bagged the Nepal NPGA Match Play.

Sanjay Lama, who failed to win a single event, finished second in the Order of Merit with a total earning of Rs 411,250. His second place finish in the lucrative final event—Premier Golf Championship—lifted him into the second position in the Order of Merit. He earned Rs 112,000 for finishing joint second with Surya Prasad Sharma at the Premier Golf.

Another pro who ended the season without a trophy, Bhuwan Nagarkoti ended up in third in the Order of Merit. Nagarkoti collected a total prize money of Rs 369,000 with his best finish being runner-up in two events: Surya Nepal Challenge and Surya Nepal Western Open. Khadka finished fourth in the Order of Merit with a total earnings of Rs 341,000. Sharma finished fifth with a total earning of Rs 303,000. The RNGC veteran Rame Magar rounded up in seventh with a total earning of Rs 257,000.