Sports
Nagarkoti takes lead
Bhuwan Nagarkoti carded three-under 65 to take one stroke lead over defending champion Rame Magar in the first round of the Surya Nepal Kathmandu Open at the par-68 Royal Nepal Golf Club (RNGC) on Tuesday.Bhuwan Nagarkoti carded three-under 65 to take one stroke lead over defending champion Rame Magar in the first round of the Surya Nepal Kathmandu Open at the par-68 Royal Nepal Golf Club (RNGC) on Tuesday.
The RNGC pro Rame Magar shot two-under 66 to stay second behind the Gokarna Golf Club pro Nagarkoti. Veteran Deepak Magar a stroke further back at 67 in the eighth event of the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2017-18. Top-ranked Shivaram Shrestha and Bikash Adhikari were tied for fourth at even-par 68. Amateur Tanka Bahadur Karki, Bhuwan Kumar Rokka and Jayaram Shrestha shared the sixth place at one-over 69. Dhana Bahadur Thapa and Rabi Khadka were next at two-over 70.
In amateur section, Surendra Phuyal was in second at four-over, while Binod Tamang, Sunil KC and Subash Ghising share the third spot at five-over 73.
Nagarkoti shot three-under 31 on the front nine and even-par 34 on the back nine. He sank birdies on the first, third and fifth holes in this first nine hole. On his way back, Nagarkoti sank birdies on the 11th and 13th holes against bogeys on the 16th and 17th.
Rame Magar carded even-par 34 on the front nine and two-under 32 on the back nine. He sank birdies on the first and fifth against bogeys on the seventh and ninth holes. On a bogey-free back nine, Rama Magar sank birdies on the 11th and 16th holes. Deepak Magar shot one-over 35 on the front nine and two-under 32 on the back nine. He dropped shots on the second, sixth and seventh against birdies on the fourth and ninth holes. On his way back, Deepak dropped another shot on the 11th but made amends with birdies on the 13th, 17th and 18th holes.
Nepal No 1 Shrestha shot one-under 33 on the front nine and shot one-over 35 on the back nine. In all, 33 professional and 13 amateurs are taking part in the event organised by the Nepal Professional Golfers Association. Cut will be applied after 36 holes, with 21 top pros with the ties (if any) along with top six amateurs making it to the final two rounds.
The event offers Rs 525, 000 in prize money with the champions earning Rs 90,000, runner-up taking home Rs 61,000 and third-placed pro walking away with Rs 47,000.