Arjun Atwal first Indian to win on PGA tour
Arjun Atwal made history last night at the Wyndham Championship, becoming the first Indian player to win on the PGA Tour.
What makes the success even more remarkable is that this is a player who lost his card only a few weeks ago and had to go through three rounds of qualifying to take his place at the event.
Atwal, 37, who started the final round with a three-stroke lead, took the title in dramatic circumstances following a day of twists and turns in South Carolina. The overnight leader’s advantage had evaporated by the halfway stage of yesterday’s play, as his putter failed to find the magic that had guided him to scores of 61, 65 and 67 in the opening rounds.
But two terrific birdies on the back nine pulled him clear of a seven man group that was on 18-under-par, and he kept his nerve turning for home to get in 20 under par. His eventual winning putt was a pressure packed seven-footer on the 18th that he confidently stoked home to end David Toms’ hopes of a playoff.
Despite Toms’ final-day 64, which included three successful 20-foot birdie putts, it was his American counterpart and former US Open victor Lucas Glover that looked the one most likely to catch Atwal. The Ryder Cup hopeful made six birdies on the front nine to jump to the top of the leaderboard, but his erratic play of the tee on 10 and 14, put paid to his challenge and he finished the day three back on 17-under-par.
Atwal’s championship success represents an extraordinary turnaround in his life over the past three years. After progressing through the golfing ranks with wins on the European, Asian and Nationwide tours, his life was thrown into turmoil following a car accident that resulted in the driver of the other car losing his life. After a year-long investigation Atwal was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing, and has started to find his form once again.
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