City youth finishes second in golf

Chandigarh’s Rajiv Kumar Jatiwal (65-73-71) posted a 71 in the third and last round to finish runner-up at 7-under 209, while Lucknow’s Rajesh Kumar Gautam, a rookie on the PGTI who is currently serving in the Army, came up with a steady final round performance of even-par 72 to register a two-shot win at a total of 9-under 207 at the PGTI NEXGEN Gurugram 2025.

The 35-year-old Jatiwal (69-66-72), the overnight leader by three shots, made five birdies and five bogeys to hang on to his lead and record his first professional win. Jatiwal picked up the winning cheque worth Rs 2.54 lakh to lead the PGTI NEXGEN Order of Merit.

Sourav Choudhary (71-72-68) of Mhow carded the third day’s best score of 68 to rise eight spots on the leaderboard and finish third at five-under 211. Rajesh Kumar Gautam produced four birdies and three bogeys on the front-nine on Thursday. On the back-nine, Rajesh added another birdie and two bogeys. “Even though I was not in good driving form and couldn’t execute my plans of hitting maximum regulations today, I managed to stay ahead, thanks to some accurate iron shots and putting. I was regularly landing my shots close to the flags,” said Jatiwal.