Nikhil, Ashish claim National Final spots in MercedesTrophy

Kolkata golfers, Nikhil Poddar and Ashish Chadha claimed the two National Final spots available on Day 1 of the Kolkata Leg of the 17th annual MercedesTrophy here today.
Nikhil CAT -A (0-17) and Ashish CAT - B (18-24) ended the day at a nett score of 72.2 and 73 respectively. They will now be playing the National Finals scheduled in Pune's Oxford Golf Resort from March 15-17.
Ashish said: "It is a privilege to play in Mercedes tournaments as they are very well organized. Golf is a very important part of my life and I practiced a few times as well for the tournament. I am looking forward to the finals now."

Nikhil said, "I had a patchy round today but I am lucky to win the group and I am really looking forward to the second national finals of my MercedesTrophy career. It has been five years since the time I have been there."
There were a host of other prizes on offer on the day. Prominent winners included Anuj Singh who won the Ballantine's Long Drive Challenge on the 15th hole with a mammoth drive of 253 yards. Abhijit Das won the SWISS Closest to Pin contest landing the ball just 18 ft. From the pin on hole 13.
In the Mercedes - Benz straightest drive contest played on hole four, Pradip Bajoria was declared the winner while in the Mercedes- Benz Closest to Pin in Two Shots was won by Nilesh Jatia on hole 16 who scored an eagle on the second shot. The best gross winner for the day was awarded to Pawan Ghew who had a gross score of 78.

The format of play was Double Peoria. This unique format of adjusting handicaps of players levels the playing field enabling golfers to have a greater chance of qualifying for the National Finals.
Three Winners from the National Finals will further progress to the MercedesTrophy World Finals - Stuttgart, Germany in September 2017 to compete against winners from all over the world. One winner will travel to Scotland to witness the British Open at Royal Birkdale in July.