Suva’s Mohammed Rizwan claimed his third major title after winning the prestigious 50th RC Manubhai sponsored Ba Golf Open Championship at the Fiji Sugar Corporation Rarawai course on Sunday.
The two-day tournament was a special one for the golfers as it marked RC Manubhai’s historic ‘golden jubilee’ sponsorship, the longest for a sporting event in the country.
The Bred Bank business analyst holed an unexpected eagle on the 15th par four (260 metres) hole in the second round to edge past Fiji’s top amateur player Abid Hussain and home town favourite Asish Chand.
Rizwan, who won the Suva Open and Natadola Open titles back to back in 2017, said the course condition was tough considering the heavy rain during the weekend. He said the tournament was nearly postponed after 27 holes following the fl ooding of the greens.
“My putting on the greens wasn’t that good,” Rizwan said.
“I was hitting pin high shots but the putts were not going in.
“On the 16th hole I was one shot behind Abid Hussain and Asish Chand so I knew that I had to do something to at least tie for the lead.
“I did not have in mind that I could make an eagle on the par four. It was a blind shot from 72 metres, so I used the sand wedge which is the 56 degrees club. I had an option to either use the 56 degree or the 60 degrees club, but opted for the 56 degrees to control the distance.
“It was really a blind shot and then Nigel (Goundan) shouted that the ball had gone in the hole. I did not expect that but that is what pushed me into the lead.”
RC Manubhai managing director RC Manubhai Dinesh Patel said the weather was not in the favour of the golfers. Patel said despite the wet conditions the golfers managed to complete the 36 holes event.
“It was our golden jubilee event which is a momentous occasion for any company,” he said.
“This would have been held last year to coincide with Fiji’s 50th Independence Celebrations in October but had to be postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This sponsorship started when Fiji gained its independence and is the longest sponsorship for a sporting event in the country.
“The Ba Open has grown to be the biggest tournament on the Fiji golfing calendar and RC Manubhai conveys its thanks to all the golfers who have supported us all over the years.
“This ongoing participation has given us the boost to sponsor the event for many more years.
“A lot of hard work had gone in setting up the course after Tropical Cyclone Yasa and TC Ana recently.”
Prizes: (Overall Gross) Rizwan Mohammed 143; (Runner-up Gross) Asish Chand 145; (Overall Net) Jyoti Lal 133; (Runner-up Net) Monish Raj 134; (A Grade 36 Holes Gross) 1st Abid Hussain 146, 2nd Jainendra Prasad 151, 3rd Rohit Chandra 152; (A Grade 36 Holes Net) 1st Jai Sharma 137, 2nd Dennis Singh 140, 3rd Nigel Goundan 146; (B Grade 36 Holes Gross) 1st Ravin Padarath 165, 2nd Salesh Kumar 166, 3rd Vishwa Nadan 173; (B Grade 36 Holes Net) 1st Avinesh Kumar 139, 2nd Jitendra Sami 142, 3rd Pradeep Chandra 151; (C Grade 36 Holes Gross) Samisoni 170, Ravinesh Chaudhary 172, Anil Prakash 187; (C Grade 36 Holes Net) 1st Sheik M 135, 2nd Subash Chand 149, 3rd Avinesh Datt 154. Prizes Awarded: (Overall Gross) Rizwan Mohammed 143; (Runner-up Gross) Asish Chand 145; (Overall Net) Jyoti Lal 133; (Runner-up Net) Monish Raj 134; (A Grade 36 Holes Gross) 1st Abid Hussain 146, 2nd Jainendra Prasad 151, 3rd Rohit Chandra 152; (A Grade 36 Holes Net) 1st Jai Sharma 137, 2nd Dennis Singh 140, 3rd Nigel Goundan 146; (B Grade 36 Holes Gross) 1st Ravin Padarath 165, 2nd Salesh Kumar 166, 3rd Vishwa Nadan 173; (B Grade 36 Holes Net) 1st Avinesh Kumar 139, 2nd Jitendra Sami 142, 3rd Pradeep Chandra 151; (C Grade 36 Holes Gross) Samisoni 170, Ravinesh Chaudhary 172, Anil Prakash 187; (C Grade 36 Holes Net) 1st Sheik M 135, 2nd Subash Chand 149, 3rd Avinesh Datt 154.
