Lahiri finishes ninth in Queen’s Cup, Himmat 14th

SAMUI - Young Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri played himself into contention with a superb run of four birdies between the third and tenth holes, only to see his chances fade away with a double bogey on 14th followed by another bogey on 16th on the final day of the Queens Cup here Sunday.

The Indian youngster, who had earlier in the season finished fourth at the Black Mountain Masters, finished with a 70 and ended at nine-under 275 in tied ninth place.

Lahiri said: Im quite happy with my four days. Had a couple of hiccups on the back nine but thats golf. I played solid and Im happy I got into contention. If I can keep doing that, hopefully I can convert one. I didnt do that the past three weeks so Im happy that I did well despite the odds. Im quite pleased. I need to do some work on my short game. Anybody can win as long as you hole putts.

Among other Indians Himmat Rai displayed his potential with a card of 70 despite a four-hole stretch from 11th to 14th when he had three bogeys. His five-under total of 279 fetched him a share of 14th place, his best on Asian Tour.

C. Muniyappa (69) was two-over for the week in tied 35th place, while Rahil Gangjee (79) ended tied 53rd after a miserable final round.

Meanwhile, Thailand’s Chinnarat Phadungsil grabbed the title with a stylish three-shot victory to claim his third Asian Tour title.

Still only 20, the power-packed Chinnarat reinforced his credentials as the future king of Asian golf with a superb four-under-par 67 in the final round at the Santiburi Samui Country Club to end a glorious week on 16-under-par 268.

Three birdies over his closing five holes saw Chinnarat push Japan’s Yoshinobu Tsukada (71), Kim Dae-hyun of Korea (68) and compatriot Udorn Duangdecha (67) into a share of second place in the $300,000 Asian Tour event, sponsored by the Sports Authority of Thailand and Bangkok Airways.

“I can’t believe that I have won three times before my 21st birthday but this week, I hit it really good,” said a delighted Chinnarat, who won $47,550. “It feels fantastic to win the Queen’s Cup. At the turn (where he led by two), I knew I could win. I aimed for pars and then went for birdies over the closing few holes.”

The 39-year-old Tsukada, who was chasing his first professional victory, struggled all day on the greens and suffered a costly three-putt par at the last hole to fall into a share of second place with a final round of 71.

South Africa’s Keith Horne and Thammanoon Srirot of Thailand finished joint fifth on 272 with the promising Kiradech Aphibarnrat of Thailand a further stroke back.