Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh)[India], June 15 (ANI): The Professional Golf Tour of India will make its debut in the historic city of Varanasi with the sixth event of the NexGen season scheduled to be played at the BLW Greens golf course from June 16 to June 18.
The PGTI’s first-ever tournament in Varanasi offers a prize purse of Rs 25 lakh. The event will be played over three rounds (54 holes) with the cut being applied after two rounds (36 holes). The top-36 players and ties will make the cut for the third and final round.
The tournament features a field of 72 players. The leading players in the field are Sunit Chowrasia (2026 DP World PGTI NexGen Order of Merit leader), Rajesh Kumar Gautam, Bipin Mukhiya, Abhishek Kumar, Aditya Raj Singh Chahal and Vinay Kumar Yadav, as well as 15-year-old Arjunveer Shishir. The two Varanasi-based players in the field are Imam-ul-Haq and Hemant Yadav.
The winner of this year’s NexGen Order of Merit will earn an exemption on the main tour (DP World PGTI) for the 2026 season.
Amandeep Johl, CEO, DP World PGTI, said, “Bringing a DP World PGTI NexGen event to Varanasi for the first time, which also happens to be the constituency of our esteemed Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, is a proud moment for us. This event reflects our commitment to taking professional golf beyond the traditional centres and into the heart of India. Varanasi's rich heritage and passionate golfing community make it an ideal host, and we look forward to giving young professionals the platform they need to compete and grow. The tournament also seeks to further promote professional golf in Varanasi and inspire more youngsters in the city to take up the sport.”
Anurag Gupta, Honourable Secretary, BLW Greens, said, “We are proud and delighted that BLW Greens, Varanasi, is hosting its first-ever DP World PGTI NexGen event. This is a landmark moment not only for our club but also for the growth of golf in Varanasi. Hosting a professional tournament of this stature places Varanasi on the national golfing map and provides local golf enthusiasts, young players, and the wider community with an opportunity to witness professional golf of the highest standard. We look forward to delivering an exceptional experience for the players, officials, partners, and spectators. We wish the players all the best.”
The Pro-Am event was played on Sunday. The Pro-Am was won by the team consisting of professional Pankaj Maandiya and amateurs Manoj Manjhi, Ritesh Singh and Amit Verma. The winning team received their prizes from Anurag Gupta, Honourable Secretary, BLW Greens.
The NexGen Tour was launched by the DP World PGTI in 2025 as its development tour with the objective of providing equal playing opportunities to all professional golfers of India and to increase the bench strength in Indian golf which in turn increases competition and the level of golf. The NexGen also aims to take professional golf to Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities in India, thus expanding the reach of the sport within the country. (ANI)
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