Mauritius, 03-12-2017
Arjun Atwal loses in a playoff to Dylan Fritelli at AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open
Atwal secures Asian Tour card
India’s Arjun Atwal lost out in a playoff to South African Dylan Frittelli to finish runner-up on a thrilling final day at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open.
The 27-year-old Frittelli closed with a four-under-par 67 to finish on 16-under-par 268 which was matched by a battling Atwal, whose 25-foot eagle putt on the last hole hit the side of the cup before spinning past the hole.
Atwal (62-70-68-68) birdied the hole to force extra time but was beaten by the South African’s birdie on 18 as Atwal made par to settle for second place at the €1million (approximately US$1.07 million) event sanctioned by the Asian Tour, Sunshine Tour and European Tour.
Frenchman Romain Langasque posted a 67 to finish in third place on 270 at the Heritage Golf Club.
The 44-year-old Atwal, who will captain Team Asia in the EurAsia Cup 2018, was disappointed to lose in the playoff after holding at least a share of the lead since the opening day where he set a course record 62.
Atwal said, “I didn’t read the line in my second shot (play-off), didn’t hit a good shot and didn’t hit a great putt. Dylan obviously did the right thing and deserves to win. I’m happy with the way I played this week but right now I’m just disappointed to lose the tournament.
“You don’t get many chances especially at my age. I’ll take a lot of positives out of this week but right now I’m really mad.
“To be honest, I haven’t been in that situation in a while. To be fair, I think I handled myself quite well. The tee shot (play-off) was okay. I still put myself in position to make birdie but I didn’t pull through,” added Arjun, who recorded his best finish since his win at the Dubai Open 2014.
The silver lining for Atwal was that his runner-up finish lifted him from 55th to 23rd position in the Asian Tour Order of Merit which in turn helped him secure his card for 2018.
Shiv Kapur was the next best Indian in tied 16th as he totalled eight-under-276.
Shubhankar Sharma and SSP Chawrasia both closed the week in tied 27th at five-under-279. As a result Chawrasia moved up from fourth to third place in the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
Gaganjeet Bhullar ended tied 40th at three-under-281.
Source: Asian Tour
About PGTI:
Formed in 2006, Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) is the recognised official body of professional golf in India. PGTI's objective is to promote professional golf in the country, as well as to give players an opportunity to be involved in the decision making on all aspects of the game. Headed by Mr. Kapil Dev (President), PGTI's governing body comprises leading Indian golf professionals. PGTI currently has over 300 members.
For information on PGTI, please contact:
Nikhil Kalaan
Media Manager - PGTI
Mobile: 9910974846
Email: media@pgtofindia.com
