Digboi, Assam, 23-11-2024

Seasoned Jamal Hossain sees off stiff challenge from rivals with a stoic 71 to bag IndianOil SERVO Masters 2024 crown

The seasoned Jamal Hossain of Bangladesh saw off a stiff challenge from multiple rivals with a stoic final round performance of one-under 71 to bag the crown at the INR 85 lakh IndianOil SERVO Masters 2024 played at the Digboi Golf Links in Digboi, Assam.

Jamal (68-65-72-71) totaled 12-under 276 for the week to win his fifth title by a narrow one-shot margin. Hossain picked up a prize money cheque worth INR 12,75,000 to jump 22 spots from 39th to 17th place in the TATA Steel PGTI Ranking.

There was a four-way tie for second place at 11-under 277 between Noida’s Gaurav Pratap Singh (72-67-71-67), Delhi golfers Kapil Kumar (71-70-68-68) and Sachin Baisoya (69-73-67-68) and Pune’s Divyansh Dubey (68-70-69-70).

Udayan Mane (70) and Samarth Dwivedi (70) finished tied sixth at 10-under 278.

Lucknow’s Sanjay Kumar signed for the tournament’s lowest score of eight-under 64 to secure tied 12th place at seven-under 281.

Deven Bhumij (78), the only Digboi-based professional to make the cut, ended the week in tied 46th place at six-over 294.

Jamal Hossain, who enjoyed a two-shot lead over the last two rounds, made an early bogey for the third day in succession when he dropped a shot on the first hole. But like previous days, the 39-year-old came roaring back once again with birdies on the next two holes landing it within four feet of the flag on both occasions.

Then despite some great chipping that earned him birdies on the 11th and 14th, Jamal conceded bogeys on the 10th, 12th and 13th, as a result of some ordinary putting that seemed to derail his title hopes.

With multiple contenders including Gaurav Pratap Singh, Kapil Kumar, Sachin Baisoya and Divyansh Dubey, breathing down his neck, Hossain relied on all his experience to bring out his best on the last two holes and snatch victory.

Jamal executed two excellent iron shots before making a clutch putt from eight feet for birdie on the 17th. The Dhaka-resident sealed it with a brilliant chip-putt for par on the last hole after his nearest rivals Divyansh Dubey (70), Gaurav Pratap Singh (67) and Sachin Baisoya (68) bogeyed the 18th hole to crash out of contention. Kapil Kumar (68), who also mounted a serious challenge on day four, couldn’t find a birdie in the late stages in order to catch up with Jamal.

Jamal, the first amateur to win on the PGTI back in 2009, said, “I made a good comeback once again after a poor start. After a couple of bad shots on the 10th, I recovered really well to salvage a bogey there because it could’ve been worse. My poor putting form continued today but my tee shots, approaches and chipping saved the day for me.

“Towards the end, I just thought that I have to give it my all and things fell in place perfectly for me. The birdie on the 17th gave me a lot of self-belief as that eight-footer was the longest putt I had made all day. I then used all my experience to get out of a tough spot on the 18th and see it home with a three-feet par conversion.

“I’m delighted to win here in Digboi at the magnificent Digboi Golf Links for the first time. I thank IndianOil for their support to this event.”

Picture Caption:

Champion Jamal Hossain receives the trophy from Lt. Col. Ajay Kaila (Retd.), ED & RH, Digboi Refinery