Nihal Cheema, Drona Singh Dhull, and Prince Bainsla among the boys, and Naaysha S Sinha, Gairat Kaur Kahlon, and Shiksha Jain among the girls, delivered outstanding performances in the fifth edition of the US Kids Golf Indian Championship at Classic Golf and Country Club.
Local Golfers Shine Despite Challenges
Despite challenging weather conditions and smog, local golfers made a clean sweep of the titles, showcasing commendable resilience. The Tournament Committee had to reduce the final round for all sections to nine holes due to insufficient daylight from a delayed start.
Top Performers in Boys’ Categories
Nihal Cheema in Boys 8 was the only player to shoot par or better across all three days, emerging as the clear winner over his main rival, Zowra Sikand. The Chandigarh golfer posted impressive rounds of 36-34-33. On the final day, he was bogey-free and scored three birdies.
Drona Singh Dhull, representing Haryana, made his mark in Boys 11 by birdieing four of the nine holes. He recorded the best round of the day with a 4-under 32, achieving four birdies and no bogeys.
Prince Bainsla shone in the Boys 15-18 category, having the best round of the week with a remarkable 6-under 66 on the first day. He secured victory ahead of Shashank Sachin Gadre, who maintained par scores on all three days, while Arshvant Srivastava finished third.
Exceptional Girls’ Performers
In the Girls’ categories, standout players included Aanya Dandriyal in Girls 11-12 and Preitisha Kaur Gill in Girls 15-18. Aanya and Malaysia’s Choi Quinn Cie were locked in a tight battle, both totaling 196 over 45 holes. The tie-breaker favored Aanya, who recorded an eagle and a birdie against four bogeys in her regulation round.
Other notable performances among the girls included Naaysha S Sinha in Girls 8, Gairat Kaur Kahlon in Girls 9-10, and Shiksha Jain in Girls 13-14.
Impressive Boys’ Talent
Additional stars in the Boys’ section were Taanush Kumar in Boys 9, Vedaansh Jain in Boys 10, Siddhant Sharma in Boys 12, and Arihaan Beri in Boys 13-14.
Cash Prizes for All Winners
For the first time, winners up to fifth place received cash prizes. The champions earned Rs. 25,000, while second and third places received Rs. 10,000 each, and the subsequent three places were awarded Rs. 5,000 each.
“While the US Kids Indian Championship offers Priority Status for leading performers, the introduction of cash prizes aims to attract golfers and their families, who invest significant effort in nurturing their kids as champions,” said Rajesh Srivastava, President and Founder of US Kids Golf India and Asia.
Future Plans and Championships
“We also plan to bring foreign coaches and send children abroad for training,” he added. “Currently, we have spread across Asia in nearly a dozen countries, welcoming Indian kids to play, and inviting kids from other countries to visit India. In a year’s time, we aspire to host an Asian Championships for US Kids from all over Asia at a top-class Championship course.”
The US Kids Indian Championships also featured Skills contests with various prizes.
Upcoming dates for local Tours, likely to feature double the number of events split into two halves of the season, will be announced later, alongside the various US Kids National Championships in different Asian countries.