<p>The Bangladeshi returned a final-round card of one-under 71, similar to second placed Ranjit Singh of Chandigarh, in glorious conditions at the Karnataka Golf Association, sealing the victory. The 25-year-old finished with eight-under 280 for the title, one stroke ahead of Ranjit. <br /><br />After the initial charge, Lahiri’s game fizzled out dramatically towards the end when his 71 left him at an overall five-under 283 for third place.<br /><br />Leader since the end of round two, Rahman started the day with a birdie on the first hole before settling to play stable round. Despite his playing partners — Ranjit and Lahiri — applying constant pressure throughout the course of play that kept the crowd on their toes, the Bangladeshi never lost his composure. <br /><br />Unlike the last three days, Rahman did not experience a variable weather on the day and he completed a flawless front-nine with two birdies. His only blot was a bogey on the par-4 final hole but his first PGTI title of the 2009 season was already decided when Lahiri double-bogeyed and Ranjit could only come up with a par effort. <br />When asked if the pressure finally caught on to him on the 18th, a delighted Rahman said: “No! Actually, I had a two-stroke lead over Ranjit and Anirban (Lahiri) heading into the final hole. After Anirban hit his second shot way over the green. I chipped well from the bunker and I knew the victory was there.”<br /><br />Rahman, who left the City along with Lahiri on Saturday night to participate in the September 10-13 Macau Open, holed a 10-foot for birdie in the first and fired another 25-foot birdie in the sixth. His rescue efforts, especially on the seventh and 11th holes were remarkable.<br /><br />On the seventh, his tee-shot landed into the left-side bunker but he chipped out superbly onto the green for par. Four holes later, he had to dig deep. He went from bunker-to-bunker with his first and second shots but a good chip on the third meant there was no damage.<br /><br />Local lad Lahiri caught everyone’s attention with a rollicking start. His birdies on the second, fourth and fifth left at two strokes behind leader Rahman at the turn but a topsy-turvy ride on backward journey cost him dearly. Birdies on the 11th and 13th, sandwiched by a bogey on 12th and another one on the 15th left him disappointed.<br /><br />Leading scores: 280: Md Siddikur Rahman (71, 69, 69, 71); 281: Ranjit Singh (70, 71, 69, 71); 283: Anirban Lahiri (72, 70, 70, 71); 284: C Muniyappa (71, 72, 73, 68); 286: Shamim Khan (71, 74, 71, 70); 287: Harendra P Gupta (69, 73, 71, 74), Manav Jaini (71, 70, 73, 73); 288: R Srinivas (72, 74, 71, 71); 290: Rahil Gangjee (75, 73, 73, 69); 291: Sanjay Kumar (76, 70, 73, 72), Raju Ali Mollah (72, 76, 72, 71).</p>
<p>The Bangladeshi returned a final-round card of one-under 71, similar to second placed Ranjit Singh of Chandigarh, in glorious conditions at the Karnataka Golf Association, sealing the victory. The 25-year-old finished with eight-under 280 for the title, one stroke ahead of Ranjit. <br /><br />After the initial charge, Lahiri’s game fizzled out dramatically towards the end when his 71 left him at an overall five-under 283 for third place.<br /><br />Leader since the end of round two, Rahman started the day with a birdie on the first hole before settling to play stable round. Despite his playing partners — Ranjit and Lahiri — applying constant pressure throughout the course of play that kept the crowd on their toes, the Bangladeshi never lost his composure. <br /><br />Unlike the last three days, Rahman did not experience a variable weather on the day and he completed a flawless front-nine with two birdies. His only blot was a bogey on the par-4 final hole but his first PGTI title of the 2009 season was already decided when Lahiri double-bogeyed and Ranjit could only come up with a par effort. <br />When asked if the pressure finally caught on to him on the 18th, a delighted Rahman said: “No! Actually, I had a two-stroke lead over Ranjit and Anirban (Lahiri) heading into the final hole. After Anirban hit his second shot way over the green. I chipped well from the bunker and I knew the victory was there.”<br /><br />Rahman, who left the City along with Lahiri on Saturday night to participate in the September 10-13 Macau Open, holed a 10-foot for birdie in the first and fired another 25-foot birdie in the sixth. His rescue efforts, especially on the seventh and 11th holes were remarkable.<br /><br />On the seventh, his tee-shot landed into the left-side bunker but he chipped out superbly onto the green for par. Four holes later, he had to dig deep. He went from bunker-to-bunker with his first and second shots but a good chip on the third meant there was no damage.<br /><br />Local lad Lahiri caught everyone’s attention with a rollicking start. His birdies on the second, fourth and fifth left at two strokes behind leader Rahman at the turn but a topsy-turvy ride on backward journey cost him dearly. Birdies on the 11th and 13th, sandwiched by a bogey on 12th and another one on the 15th left him disappointed.<br /><br />Leading scores: 280: Md Siddikur Rahman (71, 69, 69, 71); 281: Ranjit Singh (70, 71, 69, 71); 283: Anirban Lahiri (72, 70, 70, 71); 284: C Muniyappa (71, 72, 73, 68); 286: Shamim Khan (71, 74, 71, 70); 287: Harendra P Gupta (69, 73, 71, 74), Manav Jaini (71, 70, 73, 73); 288: R Srinivas (72, 74, 71, 71); 290: Rahil Gangjee (75, 73, 73, 69); 291: Sanjay Kumar (76, 70, 73, 72), Raju Ali Mollah (72, 76, 72, 71).</p>
