Manu Gandas soars to top with record three eagles

Chennai, Aug 20 (PTI) Manu Gandas of Gurugram soared to the top of the leaderboard with a record three eagles in his first round of five-under 67 at the inaugural Chennai Pro Championship here on Tuesday.

Mysuru’s Yashas Chandra M S and Bengaluru’s Syed Saqib Ahmed also fired rounds of 67 to join Gandas in the lead at the TNGF Cosmo Golf Course.

Among the six players tied for fourth with scores of 68 at the INR 50 lakh event, were Olympian Udayan Mane and Chennai-based professional S Prasanth, who is playing at his home course.

Gandas, the 2022 PGTI Order of Merit champion, made a terrific start with birdie-eagle-birdie on the first three holes with his eagle being an 18-feet conversion.

Manu then had a flurry of six bogeys between the fourth and the 15th, a stretch where he only picked up three birdies in exchange. His dropped shots were a result of inaccurate tee shots that led to many missed fairways and greens.

Gandas, a winner earlier this season, finally came roaring back with two more eagles on the 16th and 18th where he sank another 18-footer and also had a tap-in. He thus became only the fourth player in PGTI history to make three eagles in a round.

The three players who have previously made three eagles in a round at a PGTI event are two-time Indian Open champion Ali Sher, Yashas Chandra and Gandas’ good friend Veer Ahlawat.

Gandas, a winner at the TNGF Cosmo Golf Course in 2022, said, “Wherever I was good off the tee today, I created chances for myself. But some poor shots off the tee got me in trouble. It was a rollercoaster round.

“I was gaining shots and then dropping a few. But I managed to close it out well. It was a mixed bag. If you’re well-placed off the tee at this course, I feel it’s half the job done.

“I’ve been a little inconsistent off late so on the bad days I’m conscious that I need to hang in there. That’s what I did well today.

“Importantly, I also capitalized well on the par-5s today making eagles on three of them and a birdie on the fourth. The fact that I won at this course two years back adds to my confidence this week.”

Yashas Chandra, who also has the rare distinction of firing three eagles in a single round on the PGTI, a feat he achieved back in 2019, joined Gandas at the top of the pack thanks to his seven birdies and two bogeys in round one.

Syed Saqib Ahmed made eight birdies, a bogey and a double-bogey on day one to emerge as the third joint leader.

As the course underwent some changes last year, the score of five-under 67 now stands as the new record here.