Ahlawat wins the first Cidco Open with a solid final run in Kharghar

Veer Ahlawat receives his trophy and check from Cidco Vice Chairman and MD Vijay Singhal (second from left) and PGTI President Kapil Dev during the Kharghar Valley GC on Friday. Image courtesy of PGTI.

By Rahul Banerji

Veer Ahlawat needed all his experience to get through in the Rs 1 crore Cidco Open at the Kharghar Valley Golf Course in Navi Mumbai on Friday

The lanky Gurgaon golfer ultimately won by three strokes in the event presented by Larsen & Toubro with a solid final score of 4 under par 67, the PGTI said.

Ahlawat (65-65-73-67), who led from the start, had a total of 14-under 270 on the par-71 course, ahead of co-night leader, Pune’s Rohan Dhole Patil (70-69-64-70).

The 2024 PGTI Order of Merit champion also had to overcome a shaky first half before prevailing by an ultimately comfortable margin.

It earned Ahlawat a check for Rs 15 lakh, taking him from 18th to 11th in the 2025 rankings, with one final event to go next week in Jamshedpur.

Dhole Patil recorded his best result on the PGTI with a total of 11 under worth Rs 10 lakh and a rise to 32nd from 42nd on the money list.

Gurgaon’s Manu Gandas (68-68-70-68) and Italy’s Michele Ortolani (67-66-72-69) finished in third place at 10-under 274.

Third ace

Chandigarh’s Ravi Kumar made the third hole-in-one of the tournament during his final round of 71 to win the 13^e hole to a total of 4 under 280 and a share of ninth place.

Ahlawat, based at the DLF Golf & Country Club, started with tap-in birdies on the first and third holes.

Then he had a turbulent phase until the 10th^e as he made a solitary birdie in exchange for two bogeys and a double, finding the trees and water hazard on the fourth and ninth respectively.

While Dhole Patil, Ortolani and Gandas closed in on the turn, Ahlawat regained the initiative with an eagle and four birdies at the expense of a bogey over the last eight holes.

He took control by rolling 20-footers for eagle and birdie on holes 12 and 18 and also draining a 15-footer for birdie on hole 13.

The chasing pack struggled to keep up with the back nine. Dhole Patil was one over for the day to 13 before rallying with three straight birdies.

However, he would drop a shot on 18 to finish three shots behind Ahlawat.

Rocky run

The winner later said: “I started well today, but then made some mistakes until the 10^e. Then I got going from 11^e further.

“Despite the tough stretch in the middle, I was confident because I knew in my mind that I had played well in such tight situations before.

“I knew once I brought my ‘A’ game out, I would be tough to beat.

“I would like to thank Cidco and L&T for their support of this event. Cidco has done a great job with Kharghar Valley and I think it is one of the best courses in the country in terms of layout and length.”

Also read: Dhole Patil breaks course record and shares lead in Cidco Open

Related