Bhuvan, Niraj advanced to quarter-finals
Sports Nepal Kathmandu: Nepal No 1 pro Bhuvan Nagarkoti and No 2 Niraj Tamang advance to the quarter-finals of the Surya Nepa NPGA Match Play, sixth event under Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2024-25, at the par-68 Royal Nepal Golf Club on Tuesday.
Both Bhuvan and Niraj recorded the biggest victories – 5&4 against Sharma brothers of Pashupati and Surya Prasad respectively – in the first-round matches. Defending champion Dinesh Prajapati, Dhana Bahadur Thapa, Rabi Khadka, Pradip Kumar Lama, Toran Bikram Shahi and Rame Magar also made it to the last eight.
Top seed Bhuvan defeated No 16 Pashupati Sharma on the 14th hole after he went 5-up with four holes remaining. No 2 Niraj also completed the victory on the 14th hole against No 15 Surya Prasad Sharma. Likewise, third-seeded Dinesh beat No 14 Ramesh Adhikari 4&3.
No 8 Dhana Bahadur Thapa beat No 9 Bhuwan Kumar Rokka on the final hole, while No 4 Rabi edged past No 13 Tanka Bahadur Karki 3&2. No 12 Pradip Kumar Lama upset fifth-seeded Sanjay Lama 2&1, while No 11 Toran Bikram Shahi defeated No 6 Jayram Shrestha 3&2. In a match between two brothers, No 7 Rame Magar defeated No 10 Deepak Magar 4&3.
In the quarter-final matches on Wednesday, No 1 Bhuvan will face No 8 Dhana Bahadur Thapa, while No 4 Rabi Khadka will take on No 12 Pradip Kumar Lama. No 11 Toran Bikram Shahi will play against No 3 Dinesh Prajapati, whereas No 7 Rame Magar will face No 2 Niraj Tamang. The quarter-finals and semi-final matches will be played on Thursday. The 36-hole final and third-place playoff match are slated for Thursday.
A total of 16 pros, based on the Order of Merit of the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2023-24, are taking part in the tournament played under the match-play format. The tournament carries a cash purse of Rs 250,000. The winner will receive Rs 60,000, while the runner-up will take home Rs 42,000. The third and fourth placed pros will get Rs 32,000 and Rs 24,000 respectively. The four pros who fail to progress beyond quarter-finals will get Rs 11,000 each, and the eight players who lost in first round will get Rs 6,000 each.
