Big B to inaugurate Gujarat Kensville Challenge golf tourney

Ahmedabad, Jan 11 (PTI) Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchanwill mark his first tryst with golf tomorrow when he willinaugurate the first-ever European Challenge Tour event inIndia to be played from January 13 to 16 at the sprawlingKensville Golf and Country Club here.

The Euro 200,000 Gujarat Kensville Challenge 2011 willmake Ahmedabad only the third city in the country to host aninternational men''s golf tournament after New Delhi andKolkata.

India''s leading professional golfer Jeev Milkha Singhwill be country''s flag bearer in the event. Fir him it willbe nothing less than an emotional moment as he is the firstIndian golfer to have a signature course.

"The new tournament would provide great impetus to thesport. This is an excellent development for Indian golf. Ourgolfers will benefit greatly from so many international golftournaments scheduled to be held in India," said Jeev at thelaunch conference held here today.

Kensville is the first 18-hole golf course in the stateand has played host to national amateur circuit tournamentsbut this will be the first international tournament to be heldat the Jeev Milkha Singh-signature course.

The tournament, which is co-sanctioned by the ProfessionalGolf Tour of India (PGTI), will see 114 golfers from acrossthe globe, including top Indian professional golfers, inaction.

Some of the marquee players on view, other than Jeev,will be Ashok Kumar, the leading professional on the PGTIOrder of Merit, Asian Tour regular Gaganjeet Bhullar, AsianTour event winner Mohd Siddikur Rahman from Bangladesh, formersix-time India No 1 Mukesh Kumar, former Indian Open winnerVijay Kumar, Alessandro Tadini of Italy amongst others in theprofessional category.

Former India wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani is amongst theesteemed group of amateurs who will vie for honours in thepro-am which will be played on the "Best Ball" format.

There will also be amateurs from Delhi, Barodarepresented by Samarjit Singh Gaekwad who will have thecompany of Kensville regulars Shervill Parik, Sanjay Desai,Siddharth Naik, Alpesh Parikh, Devang Shah and Manish Chokshiamongst others.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will felicitate thewinners on the final day of the tournament.