Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Wednesday, 1 March 2023 00:05 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Seoul Asian Games 2000 Silver Medal Winner R.A. Anura Rohana, held sway over all hopefuls in Sri Lanka, 23 years later and was the clear Winner over the four Round Trials held at the upgraded beautiful scenic Professional PAR 73 Victoria Golf Resort Course in Digana, Kandy.
The tough and long Par 73 did not bother Anura Rohana who led the four round event all-the-way registering a highly impressive five-under par total of 287, five strokes clear of K. Prabagaran another star Sri Lankan professional ranked in the PGTI (Professional Golf Tour of India) over the past several years. Prabagaran ended the four rounds on Even Par after an untidy three over in the 1st Round and improved gradually with a four under final round of 67. The third professional in the field Vijitha Bandara, finished in 3rd place on a five over par total of 297.
This four round Trials and SLG Ranking Tournament also served as an indicator to select the Amateur Team to participate in the Bangladesh Amateur Championship 2023.
M.H. Chalitha Pushpika of the Sri Lanka Navy at 14 over par aggregate for the four rounds was in 4th place 19 strokes behind the winner Anura Rohana but the leading Amateur in this grueling Trials concluded at the Victoria Golf Resort. Chalitha Pushpika was just one stroke ahead of 15-year-old Junior Silver Category Champion Reshan Algama in his first outing in a Trials and Ranking Tournament played among Professional Golfers.
It was a very creditable performance by Reshan whose four−round aggregate of 307, tied with the Sri Lanka National Champion M.U. Chanaka Perera for 5th place in the Tournament. Priya Hemantha, another professional now focused on Coaching playing on his home course, improved scoring through the four rounds and ended on 310 in 7th place.
The Victoria Golf Course played long and tough being a challenging Golf Course with over 40 players participating in the SLG Ranking Event alongside the Trials. On Day three, S.D.T.K. Priyankara of the Sri Lanka Army performed an incredible Feat shooting a Hole-in-One on the Par three Seventh Hole, on a day only five birdies, many Pars and even a Triple Bogey was recorded at the hole.
Priyankara played the best Golf of his Tournament when he was Even Par in the front nine in the 3rd Round with the Hole-in-One but thereafter, the wheels fell apart and he was 10 over in the back nine. Priyankara finished down the field with an aggregate of 350 over the 4 rounds but the Hole-in-One performance in a Ranking Tournament will always be a feather in his cap.
Mithun Perera and N. Thangaraja the other two major Sri Lankan Professionals vying for Asian Games selection missed the Trials as they were playing in the PGTI 2023 currently in India. However, the PGTI performance scores will also be considered for the final selection of the Asian Games Sri Lankan Team to the Asian Games in September, Hangzhou 2023, China.
