New Delhi, 27-05-2015
Teams announced for 4th Louis Philippe Cup
SSP Chowrasia for TAKE Chennai, Rahil Gangjee for Zion Hills Bengaluru, Gaganjeet Bhullar for Jaypee Greens Greater Noida, Jyoti Randhawa for Laqshya Mumbai and Mithun Perera for Navratna Ahmedabad, Siddikur for Dev-Ellora Pune, youngster Manu Gandas picked by DLF The Crest Gurgaon
The 4th edition of the Louis Philippe Cup will see a strong cast of India’s elite professionals from the Asian Tour and Professional Golf Tour of India led by Jyoti Randhawa, SSP Chowrasia, Rahil Gangjee, Gaganjeet Bhullar and Rashid Khan. Players will compete for seven city teams in India’s only annual Professional Team golf event at the Karnataka Golf Association, Bengaluru from 11th-13th June 2015. The three day, 54 hole tournament with a prize purse of Rs. 1.2 crore, is specially approved by the Professional Golf Tournament of India (PGTI), and conceived and promoted by RN Golf Management (RNGM). The seven city teams are – defending champions Navratna Ahmedabad, strongest team on paper TAKE Chennai, DLF The Crest Gurgaon, who has gone in for a young squad, Jaypee Greens Greater Noida which consists of two members of the 2013 winning Delhi team, new entrants Zion Hills Bengaluru and Dev-Ellora Pune led by Bangladesh star Siddikur along with Laqshya Mumbai with veterans Jyoti Randhawa and Mukesh Kumar.
Kapil Dev, Owner of Dev Ellora Pune team, unveiled the teams along with Jacob John, COO, Louis Philippe, and said, “I wish I could buy two teams in this tournament but as the current format allows, I could only go with one. I plan to spend some more time with my team of Siddikur, Om Prakash Chouhan and Sanjay Kumar in Bengaluru this time and hope to clinch our first title of Louis Philippe Cup.”
Speaking on this important occasion, Mr. Jacob John of Louis Philippe said, “Louis Philippe is proud to be associated with the fourth edition of the prestigious golf tournament `Louis Philippe Cup’. Louis Philippe symbolises itself with panache and elegance, characteristics that are beautifully reflected in golf. This season, we look forward to an exciting game in the city of Bangalore as 7 teams with renowned players from various cities compete to win the coveted Louis Philippe Cup."
Team Selection & Format
As per the team selection criteria, two players from the top 14 ranked professionals on the PGTI 2014 Final Order of Merit will play on each team and will be joined by the sponsor’s pick to constitute a three member team.
As in the past three years, the total purse is Rs 1.2 crore (approx US$200,000), the 2nd highest of any domestic tournament, but shared by only 21 players instead of 50-60 in a normal PGTI or Asian Tour event. The introduction of individual prizes for first and 2nd place has got the interest of the players. The players on the PGTI circuit who finish in the Top-14 of the final Order of Merit get an automatic qualification for the lucrative Louis Philippe Cup. This acts as an impetus and adds more excitement to the fight for the Top-14 rankings on the PGTI Order of Merit.
The changed format from knockout to strokeplay mirrors the format to be used in Rio Olympics 2016 where individual and team medals are up for grabs and ensure that the interest of all teams remains till the end. In this format with the best two scores of the three players counting towards the team score each day, a team that is 15 strokes behind can actually have two players shoot 6 or 7 under par each and make up the difference in one round.
Mr. Padamjit Sandhu, Director, PGTI, said, “We are happy to have renewed our partnership with Louis Philippe for the next three years. The first three editions of the Louis Philippe Cup in 2012, 2013 and 2014 set high standards for the tournament and it is today an eagerly-awaited championship by our players. The city-based team format makes the Louis Philippe Cup uniquely exciting and challenging. As the mega-event returns to Bangalore, one of India’s most popular golfing destinations, we are confident exciting and high-quality golf will unfold over the week. We thank Louis Philippe and RNGM and look forward to working with them to further build on the championship over the years.”
Rishi Narain, CEO & Founder, RN Golf Management, said, “As various sports leagues like IPL, EPL, NBA and others have proven, Sports Teams representing cities, states or clubs / countries generate higher interest and a more engaged fan following than individuals playing for themselves. Golf is almost exclusively an individual sport so to boost interest among Indian fans, we created the city team format which we hope will catch the interest of fans. These fans will follow their city teams in the media and cheer for them at the venue and hope that their team wins the tournament. Last three years we generated considerable interest both on line and at the venue. We are grateful to Louis Philippe who, even before the 3rd edition had confirmed the next three years of financial support towards the event. The fact that six team sponsors have renewed their associations after the first three year term expired is a proof that the interest in this format is enduring. “
The tournament returns to KGA, a favourite with the players, where it began in 2012 after rotating to Delhi NCR (Jaypee Greens Golf Resort) and Mumbai (Bombay Presidency Golf Club). In the inaugural edition, the unheralded Ahmedabad shocked home favourites Bengaluru, led by Anirban Lahiri, to win the title. In 2013, a strong Delhi squad defeated Gurgaon featuring brothers-in-law Jyoti Randhawa and Digvijay Singh in a rain delayed final which came down to the final putt. This year, TAKE Chennai boasts the strongest team on paper, having lined up three of their brand ambassadors SSP Chowrasia, Chikkarangappa and Khalin Joshi who is in strong form following a win at the PGTI Ahmedabad Masters and a 15th place finish in Indonesia in April.
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
