Chawrasia conquers Masters

CARMONA, CAVITE—Calm, collected and persistent all day long, SSP Chawrasia of India came back from two strokes down with five holes to play in regulation before providing all the fireworks in the two playoff holes to rule the $1 million Resorts World Manila Masters and win for the first time outside of his home country.

The 38-year-old veteran birdied the picturesque, par-5 18th hole a total of three times yesterday—first to finish with a six-under-par 66 to join a three-man playoff; second to stay in sudden death with Sammy Chien; and the third to defeat the American-Taiwanese—to win for the second time this year after ruling the Indian Open in March.

“Everyone has been telling me to win outside of India,” Chawrasia, who represented his country in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, said during the awards rites. “I’m just very happy.”

Chien carved out a bogey-free 65 and tied Nicolas Fung at 269 after the bespectacled Malaysian had returned a scorching 63 almost two hours before.

Under benign conditions, Chawrasia raised the level of play at its highest during his three trips to the closing hole, finding the green in two in the playoffs and nearly winning it all in regulation only to narrowly miss holing it for eagle from the right greenside bunker.

“Those were the shots of the day,” Chawrasia said of his two approaches in the playoffs from 264 and 254 yards, which he drained with a 3-wood each time.

A rookie who came out of the Asian Tour Q School, Chien played with steely resolve in the first playoff hole, coming up with a brilliant flop shot from the drop zone over the green for a birdie that took sudden death to a second hole.

He would come unraveled in the most important tee shot of his young career, however, losing it to the trenches way right of the fairway—the same error that claimed the chances of another Taiwanese, Hung Chien-yao, last year.

Fung, meanwhile, finished regulation with five straight birdies to be the first to get it to 19-under, but he failed to sustain the form that he played with when the playoff came and bowed out with a par.

“Right now I would want to go home and enjoy this victory,” said Chawrasia, who won a fifth Asian Tour title and eighth overall counting European Tour wins. He will represent India in the World Cup of Golf in two weeks.

“Now I can tell my friends that I accomplished their wishes (of winning outside of India).”

Scoring never let up the whole day with Sharma Shubhankar, also of India, hitting two eagles in the back nine for one of two 62s that got him to 270 and the clubhouse lead.

Prom Meesawat of Thailand, the runner-up when China’s Liang Wenchong won in a playoff in the inaugural edition in 2013, also fired a 62 but, like Shubhankar, cannot claim the new course record with the final round playing to lift, clean and place rules.

Jay Bayron fired a 64 and Miguel Tabuena returned a 67 to finish as the best-placed Filipinos in the field at 273, tied with four others.

Chiragh Kumar and Jyoti Randhawa, also of India, shot a 64 and 67, respectively, to tie Shubhankar.

Third round leader Sutijet Kooratanapisan couldn’t get going and scrambled to a 71, winding up tied at 271 with Hung and Vietnam’s Michael Tran, who both assembled 67s.