Kathmandu, February 2

Top Nepali pro Sukra Bahadur Rai inched closer to earning full cards of the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) as he remained in the top five after the third round of the Qualifying School at the par-70 Tollygunge Golf Club in Kolkata today.

Rai carded one-under 69 on the third day for the 54-hole total of eight-under 202. The Dharan-based golfer, Rai, who was tied for second after second round, slipped to fourth position. Indian amateur golfer Aryan Roopa Anand carded five-under 65 and posted 18-under 192 to extend his lead to nine strokes.

Karan Pratap Singh, who also carded a 65, remained at the second position with the total score of 12-under 198, while fellow Indian pro C Muniyappa (68) was third at nine-under 201, one stroke ahead of Rai.

Sri Lanka's K Prabagaran (67) and India's Sudhir Sharma (68) shared the fifth place at seven-under 203.

Nepal No 1 pro Rai, who carded three-under 67 and four-under-66 in the first two rounds respectively, returned with under-par card for the third straight day. He played one-over 35 on the front nine before carding two-under 34 on the latter half. Rai faced bogeys on the second, fifth and sixth holes before carding birdies on the eighth and ninth. After taking the turn, Rai dropped a shot on the 10th hole but bounced back with birdies on the 11th, 15th and 18th holes.

Top 34 players after the completion of 72 holes will earn full cards for the 2023 season of the Indian Tour. Rai got full cards for the previous season of the Indian Tour but failed to protect the card after he fell out of top 60 in the Order of Merit. Rai, who played 18 tournaments in the previous season, finished at 67th position last year.

A version of this article appears in the print on February 3, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.