Siddikur ambles to sixth PGTI title

Bangladesh golf's flagbearer Siddikur Rahman clinched the title of the inaugural City Bank American Express Chittagong Open with a commanding six-stroke advantage at the Bhatiary Golf & Country Club (BGCC) yesterday.

The two-time Asian Tour winner, who led since the second round, ambled to his sixth Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) title after carding a two-under in the final round for a total of 16-under-par (272). Sanjeev Kumar of India finished runner-up at 10-under-par (278) after his impressive final round of four-under-68.

Siddikur, leading by seven strokes overnight, drove home the advantage on the final day with considerable ease as none of the other golfers posed any threat to his lead. It was also his first win on the tour since his triumph in Dhaka exactly one year back.

The 32-year-old was three-under through 11 holes on Saturday after chipping-in for a birdie on the fifth hole and also setting up tap-in birdies on the 10th and 11th with a couple of top-class chip shots. He made another chip-in on the 16th, his second of the round and fifth of the week, to cruise home despite bogeys on the 12th and 17th.

"My chipping was the best aspect of my game this week. I made five chip-ins through the tournament. I didn't leave myself too many long putts, especially on the last day. I felt I kept up the intensity through the final round and was therefore in total control," Siddikur said after grabbing a paycheque of 600,000 lakh rupees.

"I was really excited and pumped up due to the massive crowd that came out to cheer for me today. It feels really nice to win another tournament in my home country. This will give me loads of confidence for the rest of the Asian Tour season," the ace golfer added.

Delhi's Shamim Khan (70) finished third at eight-under-par (280). Jamal Hossain Mollah (even-par-288) and Jakiruzzaman Jakir (one-over-289) were the other two Bangladeshis in the top-10 as they finished ninth and tied for 10th respectively.