Tenzing Tshiring teeing-off at the 10th Faldo Series Asia Grand Final. He’s aiming to defend his title in the Boys’ 12-16 section at the Faldo Series Nepal Championship. Picture by Xaume Olleros.
Kathmandu, Nepal: The search to unearth local golfing heroes will gather pace with the staging of the fifth edition of the Faldo Series Nepal Championship.
The 10th leg of the record-breaking 2016-17 Faldo Series Asia season, the Nepal event will showcase the brightest young golfing talent from the South Asian nation that is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by China and to the south, east and west by India.
Hailed as the most important event on the annual Nepalese junior golfing calendar, the Faldo Series Nepal Championship at Gokarana Forest Resort provides a welcome platform for youngsters to test their mettle in a competitive environment.
It also gives the Nepal Golf Association (NGA) an opportunity to gauge the progress of the country’s elite amateurs … and to identify potential national team representatives for the future.
Tashi Ghale, the NGA’s General Secretary, said: “The Faldo Series Nepal Championship has become the most eagerly anticipated junior tournament in Nepal.
“This is the fifth year that we have hosted the event. During that period, we’ve seen a huge growth of junior golfers in Nepal. A large portion of credit for that goes to the Faldo Series Asia.
“Sir Nick Faldo is widely known among the golfers here and through the tournament he has certainly helped the development of the game in our country.
“We are motivated to continue hosting this event annually. Our hope is that one day we will see a Nepali crowned as Faldo Series Asia Grand Final champion.”
Six-time Major champion Faldo, Britain’s most successful golfer, said: “The efforts of Tashi Ghale and the Nepal Golf Association to promote and develop golf in the country are praiseworthy.
“I am thankful to be able to play a small part in that development through the Faldo Series Nepal Championship.
“I have always believed that one of the best ways for young players from smaller golfing nations to improve their games is by being exposed to better players from the more established golf-playing countries in the region.
“For me, one of the highlights each year at the Faldo Series Asia Grand Final is to see the leading players from countries such as Bangladesh, Cambodia and Nepal playing alongside champions from Australia, India and Japan. They can learn so much from that experience.”
For the second year in succession, the Faldo Series Nepal Championship is being contested over 54 holes, ensuring it is recognised as part of the R&A World Amateur Golf Ranking system.
Among the favourites in the Boys’ 17-21 age group category are defending champion Shivaraj Majhi, fellow two-handicapper Sukra Bahadur Rai and Prithivi Malla, who plays off four.
Meanwhile, Tenzing Tshiring will be aiming for a second successive victory in the Boys’ 12-16 section, while Pratima Sherpa and Indian Sifrat Kaur Alag will lead the race for glory among the girls.
The winner of each of those categories will earn themselves places in the 11th Faldo Series Asia Grand Final, to be hosted by Faldo at Laguna Lăng Cô in Danang, Vietnam, in March, 2017.
Supported by The R&A and endorsed by the Asian Tour and the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation, the 2016-17 Faldo Series Asia campaign stretches over 11 months.
The article "Platform for Nepalese Youngsters to Shine" was originally published on http://www.agif.asia/2016/09/platform-for-nepalese-youngsters-to-shine/
