Kathmandu, April 1:

The Surya Nepal Masters has always provided an opportunity for the local pros to prove their mettle. Since the inception of the event 13 years ago, every Nepali golfer dreamt of winning the trophy and Deepak Thapa Magar did just that winning the title on Saturday.

This year’s event witnessed some of the best professionals from India and Malaysia. It also saw the first a lady professional — Parnita Garewal from India — taking part in the event.

In all, 93 golfers took part in the curtain-raiser Standard Chartered Pro-Am. Sachin Bhattarai warmed up for the main event leading his team to victory.

Suleiman Ali of India took the lead when Surya Nepal Masters began the next day while five Nepali golfers were amongst the top eight.

Deepak Thapa Magar shot a 3-under 69 to grab a four-shot lead at the halfway stage. Three others — Sabin Sapkota, Deepak Acharya and Deepak Neupane — were in the top five.

Magar all but sealed his win after the third round when he played a round of five-under 67. Magar almost lost the tournament top spot as he went down to six-under for the tournament with two holes left to play. A late fight back by Sabin increased the pressure on Magar. Sapkota finished with the final round six-under 66 after beginning at one-over par. However, Magar returned with one-over 73 and ended up as the winner.

The professionals now move to Pokhara for the Surya Nepal Western Open, slated for April 5-7.