Chandigarh Open is won by Gaganjeet Bhullar

Gaganjeet Bhullar, an Indian celebrity and inhabitant of the city, performed as one of the pre-tournament favorites when he defeated all of his opponents in the final round to win the Rs. 1 crore Chandigarh Open trophy at Chandigarh Golf Club.

Playing at his home course, Bhullar (67-67-65-68), a 12-time international winner, captured his 13th victory on the PGTI and 25th career title. He completed the round with a solid 4-under 68 in the final round to ease to a comfortable four-shot victory with a week’s total of 21-under 267, which also happened to be the lowest winning total at the Chandigarh Golf Club.

With his third victory at this club, he surpassed the previous record 72-hole total at the location, which was 20-under 268 shot by Rashid Khan and Ajeetesh Sandhu in the 2019 Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational. In a playoff, Sandhu went on to win that event.

After sharing the overnight lead with Bhullar, Angad Cheema (66-67-66-72), a professional from Chandigarh, scored a 72 in the fourth round to finish runner-up at 17-under 271. In the last round, Bhullar’s ball-striking was impeccable, as he found all but one fairway. On Saturday, he had three bogeys and seven birdies thanks to his striking, excellent wedge shots, and one long conversion on the 15th. After taking a three-shot lead by the eleventh hole, the 35-year-old Bhullar—a winner on the DP World Tour—never looked back.

In the TATA Steel PGTI Ranking, he secured the seventh rank and received a check for Rs 15 lakh as the winner.

“I was aware that I might break the 72-hole course record, but my mental goal was to finish the week at 25 under. I believed that with the manner in which I was playing, I could succeed. I was so close, and if those few putts had dropped on the back nine, I might have easily made it,” Bhullar said.

“Making the most of the fairways this week was crucial for me.” I only missed one fairway today, compared to perhaps four or five this week.

However, Cheema often missed fairways in round four, which prevented him from challenging for the championship. He has two birdies and two bogeys on his 72-hole score. His second-place result moved him up to fourth in the TATA Steel PGTI Ranking and awarded him a check for Rs 10 lakh in prize money. Yashas Chandra (72) of Mysuru concluded the week at 15-under-273 in third place, while Abhinav Lohan (68) of Faridabad finished one stroke behind in fourth.