Kathmandu, November 30 Bhuwan Nagarkoti registered an eight-stroke victory over Dhana Bahadur Thapa to win the Surya Nepal Challenge here at the Royal Nepal Golf Club today. The Gokarna Golf Club pro Nagarkoti posted 10-under 262 total on his way to claiming the third major trophy. He also came up with the career-best winning total as had bagged the Surya Nepal Western Open in 2014 and Eastern Open in 2015 — both with the total score of four-under. “I am happy to win the title after a gap of two years,” said Nagarkoti. “I could not win any trophy last year and I have been putting in a lot of efforts this time around to return to the winning ways,” he added. Nagarkoti, who had a nine-stroke cushion going into the final round after he shot 63 and 64 in the first two days, carded an even-par 68 as he completed the formality with a tap-in bogey putt on the final hole. He took the turn at one-under 33 after having a birdie-bogey-birdie affair from fourth to sixth holes. With no one pushing from behind, Nagarkoti dropped a shot on the 13th and carded a birdie on the 17th before facing a bogey on the final hole. “Pressure is always there in golf but I had a healthy lead. I played really well on the first two rounds and that put me in strong position for the last two days,” said Nagarkoti, who collected a cheque of Rs 80,000. “I am satisfied with my overall performance, especially at the RNGC course which is a tough one.” Army Club pro Thapa came second at four-under 268 after he carded three-under 65, while veteran RNGC pro Deepak Magar shot two-under 66 to finish third at two-under 270. Thapa received Rs 50,000, while Magar earned Rs 35,000. Thapa carded birdies on the third and sixth holes to take the turn at two-under 32. He added two more on the 12th and 17th but faced a bogey on the 16th as he completed the back nine at one-under 33. Magar, meanwhile, carded two birdies on the fourth and fifth and faced as many bogeys third and seventh holes. On the back nine, Magar carded two straight birdies on the 12th and 13th holes. Former Nepal No 1 pro Rabi Khadka (68) finished fourth at even-par 272 and earned Rs 27,000, while Bhuwan Kumar Rokka (69) was fifth at 275 to receive Rs 23,000. Ramesh Nagarkoti came sixth at 276, one stroke ahead of Yelamber Singh Adhikari, while Surya Prasad Sharma and Rame Magar shared the eighth position at 278. Nepal No 1 pro Shiva Ram Shrestha, who won the first two events of the season, carded two-under 66 — his best in the tournament — finished 10th at 279. Meanwhile, national team member Tanka Bahadur Adhikari won the amateur section trophy. Karki carded even-par 68 in the final round for the total score of nine-over 281, while 16-year-old Subash Ghising came second at 289 after he shot four-over 72. In all, 40 golfers — 30 pros and 10 amateurs — took part in the Rs 420,000 tournament organised by Nepal PGA under the sponsorship of Surya Nepal Pvt Ltd. Marketing Manager at Surya Nepal Pvt Ltd Bal Kishan Gurung, Nepal Golf Association President Tashi Ghale, Nepal PGA Advisor Ghana Shyam Thapa and RNGC Secretary NK Rai gave away prizes to the winners. The Tour will continue with the Surya Nepal Eastern Open in Dharan next month.