The Semi-Final Match Play of the IGU 124^th Amateur Championship of India took place today, on December 20, at the prestigious Tollygunge Club, Kolkata.

The day saw two Semi Final Match Play matches – one between Sukhman Singh and Sidhant Nathan, and the other between Harman Sachdeva and Danish Verma. Both the maches were marked by nail biting neck-to-neck competition.

Sukhman Singh of Uttar Pradesh won 4 up against Karnataka’s Sidhant Nathan after 16^th and became the first golfer to qualify for the Final Match Play round.

The second Semi Final Match Play round, played between Harman Sachdeva of Haryana and Danish Verma of Punjab, who also happened to be the only junior to be qualified to the Semi Final Match Play round, was more exciting. Tough competition prevailed, but finally, Harman Sachdeva made it to the Final Match Play round at 2 up against Danish after the 18^th.

Looking back at his round against Danish Verma, finalist Harman Sachdeva said, “To be honest, for me, the deciding moment was the 17^th hole birdie putt. I had an eighteen footer putt. It was a crucial putt or me which got me the pot to the finals”.

Sukhman Singh

On the other hand, Sukhman remarked, “My strategy for today’s round was to play better than Sidhant. Sidhant is a brilliant player. He has got the game. I did my part, I played my game and luckily I finished the game at the 16^th. After 5 holes we were all square, and as Sidhant pulled his tee shot at the par 3 6^th, I stuck it to like a foot. That shot brought me confidence, and changed the momentum of the game for me. Competing against Harman Sachdeva tomorrow will be a great moment on course, I believe”.

The weather in Kolkata was exceptionally cold today, with cold breeze from the north blowing all through the day. This made the competition eve more challenging.

Harman said, “The first few days of the match were warmer, but today happens to be one of the coldest and windiest days so far in Kolkata. Wind prevailed when we started from the 1^st, and it slightly affected my match. I didn’t let it affect me. This is a part of the game, but I didn’t let it really get to me. I played with the wind and tried to hit my shots according to it”.

Sukhman said, “Also, today was exceptionally cold with the wind blowing from the start, but I just tried to keep myself grounded. See, once you start going against the wind, your chances of winning becomes low, as the wind always win”.

The IGU 124^th Amateur Championship of India comes to an end tomorrow, on December 21, with a 36 holes Final Match Play round, that will be played between finalists of Harman Sachdeva of Haryana and Sukhman Singh of Uttar Pradesh.

Mr. Paramjit Singh, Tournament Director, Indian Golf Union (IGU), said, “In my knowledge, this tournament is the longest running match play championship in the world, and after six tough days of golf with the seasoned players of the country, we have finally the two worthy finalists, Harman and Sukhman. Both have gone through pretty tough rounds, especially today, at the 16^th and 17^th, as the tail wind blowing today took the ball left and right. Over the last few days of the tournament in Kolkata, this has been the coldest day, and that has affected the tournament to a great extent today. We are going to see a very exciting 36 holes tomorrow, whether the weather conditions remain the same like today, or not. Wishing the best to both the finalists!”