Key Points
Baisoya overcame seven-shot deficit to win
Playoff victory secured on challenging 18th hole
Father's encouragement crucial for tournament participation
Improved technical guidance helped performance
The 29-year-old Sachin Baisoya (68-71-70-68), who had decided not to play this week's event due to his father's ill health before being persuaded by the latter to tee it up in Ahmedabad, was tied at the top along with 34-year-old Udayan Mane (69-65-68-75) at a total of 11-under 277 at the end of the regulation 72 holes. Mane, the overnight leader by two shots, returned a last round of 75 after dropping five strokes on the last six holes that also saw Baisoya rise into contention.
Sachin fared better in negotiating the tricky pin position on the playoff hole (Par-4 18th) as he made par with a two-putt even as Udayan conceded a fatal bogey on the same hole. Baisoya, who has so far won both playoffs he has been a part of, thus recorded his fourth professional victory.
The winner's cheque worth INR 30 lakh catapulted Sachin, who hails from the Delhi Golf Club, from 11th place to second position in the PGTI Order of Merit. Baisoya's earnings for the season now read INR 44,65,650.
Khalin Joshi of Bengaluru carded a 74 on Saturday to finish third at 10-under 278.
Faridabad's Abhinav Lohan struck a fourth round of 72 to secure fourth place at nine-under 279. Abhinav was a prime contender for the title when he joined Udayan in the lead on the back-nine in round four. However, a late bogey and double-bogey put him out of contention.
Local lad Varun Parikh (69) of Ahmedabad and Chandigarh's Ajeetesh Sandhu (71) finished tied fifth at eight-under 280.
Sachin Baisoya made steady progress through the day to climb up the leaderboard. Sachin garnered three birdies and a bogey on the front-nine, two of his birdies coming as a result of long conversions. Baisoya then pushed ahead with an exceptional approach on the 10th and a massive 35-feet conversion on the 11th that earned him two more birdies. He finally capitalized on his good putting form with two well-read putts on the playoff hole that won him the title.
Sachin said, "I was playing well from the very start today. Therefore, I was quite confident going into the playoff.
"With today's challenging pin position on the 18th where the slope came into play, I told myself not to make any mistake during the playoff and look for a par. If I had to lose after making a par, I wouldn't mind that. But there was no scope to be overly aggressive and drop a shot in the process.
"Earlier in the day, the three consecutive birdies on the front-nine gave me a lot of confidence and so did my par save on the 17th where I had no stance during my second shot from the bunker.
"I had decided to take a break this week after missing cuts in four of the last five events. Then my father fell ill and travelling to Ahmedabad seemed even more unlikely for me. However, my father convinced me to play in Ahmedabad saying he would be alright.
"My confidence was down over the last few weeks but my uncle and former professional Vinod Kumar helped me a lot by correcting a few things as far as my hitting was concerned. I also received valuable tips from my mentor and fellow professional Manav Jaini. As a result, my hitting improved drastically this week."
Olympian Udayan Mane, a winner of 12 titles and former PGTI Order of Merit champion, was well on course to victory after making three birdies and a bogey over the first 12 holes. However, in a dramatic late twist Udayan conceded two double-bogeys and a bogey over the last six holes that took the match into a playoff.
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