Pokhara, November 26:

The fourth event under the Surya Nepal Golf Tour 2008, Western Open Golf, is teeing off here at the Himalayan Golf Course on Thursday.

The first two days will see the professionals rubbing their shoulders among each others, while

Saturday witnesses the aspiring amateur golfers teaming up with the pros for the Pro-Am event. The organisers have also added a separate event for Sunday, a friendly match between the Pokhara and Kathmandu Team to be played under the match-play format. Nepal Professional Golfer’s Association is the organiser of the Tour which is sponsored by Surya Nepal Pvt Ltd.

The professional as well as amateur golfers have already arrived here and they warmed up with a round of golf at the par-73 course, which is situated at the lap of Mt Machhapuchhre and runs along side the Bijaypur River.

Winner of the last three events under the Tour, Shiva Ram Shrestha along with top pros like Surya Nepal Masters 2007 champion Deepak Thapa Magar, Deepak Acharya, Pashupati Sharma, Rabi Khadka, Ramesh Nagarkoti and Deepak Neupane are all set for the event that carries the total purse of Rs 300,000. The winner will be richer by Rs 65,000, while others in the top 15 will also get their share of cash prize.

Apart from the difficulty of the course due to the Bijaypur River and ups and downs that create

problems for the golfers, the entry of Bijesh Shahi has added further excitement among the pros. Shahi, a brother of Nepali pro Toran Bahadur Shahi, is a visiting American professional. The former member of Royal Nepal Golf Club, Shahi moved to the US for higher studies and has been working there as a teaching pro. He has already rung a warning bell with a round of two-under in practice.

In the amateur section, Nepal’s top player Tashi Ghale will have to face a stiff challenge from the likes of Raj Pradhan, Tashi Tsering and Wanchen Dhondup.

At the press conference organised on the eve of the event, NPGA President Rabindra Man Shrestha said the city was a perfect place for golfing tourism. “Natural beauty of Pokhara can attract a lot of tourists,” he said. “What we need is a couple of international standard courses and a couple of professional golfers willing to stay back in Pokhara and impart few golfing lessons to the aspiring youths,” he added.

NPGA General Secretary Deepak Acharya and Secretary of Himalayan Golf Course Lachhim Prasad Gurung among others were also present on the occasion.