PGTI and Karnataka Tourism launch inaugural Bengaluru Open Golf Championship sponsored by Karnataka Tourism

Bengaluru, November 14, 2017: The Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) and Karnataka Tourism have joined hands to launch the inaugural Bengaluru Open Golf Championship sponsored by Karnataka Tourism.

The tournament, the 14th event of the 2017 PGTI season, is scheduled to be played at the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) course from November 15 – 18, 2017. The Pro-Am event was held on November 14. The tournament offers a handsome prize purse of Rs. 1 crore.

The tournament, a Karnataka Tourism initiative to promote Golf Tourism in the state of Karnataka, will feature a stellar field with some of India’s top professionals participating such as Jyoti Randhawa, Rahil Gangjee, Chikkarangappa, Chiragh Kumar, Khalin Joshi and Udayan Mane, to name a few. A total of 126 professionals are competing at the event.

There will be a strong local presence with the likes of Rahil Gangjee, Chikkarangappa, Khalin Joshi and Udayan Mane, all Bengaluru-based professionals, being part of the field. The prominent foreign names in the field include the Sri Lankan quartet of Mithun Perera, Anura Rohana, N Thangaraja and K Prabagaran, Bangladesh’s Md Zamal Hossain Mollah, South African Damian Naicker, Australian Kunal Bhasin and Swaziland’s Arthur Horne.

Mr. Priyank Kharge, Minister of IT, BT, Science & Technology, Tourism, Government of Karnataka, said, “It gives me extreme pleasure in launching the inaugural Bengaluru Open Golf Championship sponsored by Karnataka Tourism. The tournament is part of our long-term objective to promote Golf Tourism in Karnataka and further elevate the state’s reputation as an attractive golfing destination for foreign and domestic tourists alike. The event also serves as an excellent platform to showcase one of India’s top golfing venues, the magnificent Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) course which has hosted multiple international events. Karnataka has produced some of the best golfers in the country in recent times including the likes of Anirban Lahiri, currently India’s highest-ranked golfer in the world. We are confident that the staging of the Bengaluru Open Golf Championship will encourage more youngsters in the state to take up the sport. We look forward to an enduring partnership with the PGTI in order to grow the sport in Karnataka.”

Mr. Uttam Singh Mundy, CEO, PGTI, said, “Bengaluru is today a leading centre for golf in India having produced many talented players who have done the country proud. The inception of the Bengaluru Open Golf Championship is set to take the city’s golfing legacy forward. We thank Karnataka Tourism and the Karnataka Golf Association (KGA) for partnering with us in holding the event. A visual treat of some high quality golfing action awaits golf fans in Bengaluru.”

Mr. Sandeep Madhavan, President, Karnataka Golf Association (KGA), said, “We look forward to hosting the leading professionals in the country during the Bengaluru Open Golf Championship. We’re proud to highlight the fact that the KGA has been rated as India’s No. 1 Golf Course by the professionals and also Asia’s Best Golf Course. Bengaluru has produced several players of international stature in recent years and the advent of this new tournament is set to give a further boost to the sport in the city. I wish the tournament great success and hope that all the participants and spectators will have an enjoyable time at the KGA. We wish the players all the very best. I thank the Department of Tourism for coming forward to sponsor the tournament.”