KATHMANDU, APRIL 4

Nepali golfer Jaivir Pande won the title of the Drive, Chip and Putt at the Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia today.

Participating in the boys' 14-15 years category, Pande accumulated 28 points to finish first. Representing South Central zone in the Finals, Pande earned nine points each in driving and chipping, while he got 10 points in putting.

Nicolas Kilgore from West zone was a distant second on 21 points, while Lance Hollingshead from Northeast region came third with 20 points.

The 15-year-old Pande had qualified for the national finals after he finished first in the regional selection tournament at the Alotian Golf Course in Arkansas in October 2019. The finals, which was originally scheduled for April 2020, was postponed due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. And the event was held ahead of the 85th Masters Tournament. The 10th grader from The Kinkaid School in Texas, Pande became the first Nepali golfer to play at the Augusta National Golf Club, the sport's one of the most pristine venues.

Pande started playing golf at the age of five with his maternal grandfather, former Chief of the Army Staff Gaurav SJB Rana, during his visit to Nepal and he later joined the sport through the US Kids Golf programme initially and went on to participate in Southern Texas Jr PGA, Texas Jr Golf and Legends' Tour among others.

Founded in 2013, Drive, Chip and Putt is the joint initiative of the Masters Tournament, the US Golf Association and The PGA of America to develop junior golfers. The initiative aims at growing the game by focusing on the three fundamental skills in golf: driving, chipping and putting.

A version of this article appears in the print on April 5, 2021, of The Himalayan Times.