Veteran woman golfer Smriti eyes her second title in Pune

After winning the sixth leg of the Hero Women's Professional Golf Tour, veteran Smriti Mehra will look for an encore in the seventh leg that starts from Tuesday at the par-71 Poona Club Golf Course here.

Smriti outplayed the youngsters to clinch her maiden victory of the season in the sixth leg and will look to add another title this week. The Rs.5,00,000 event will see 13 professional golfers vying for the top spot and will culminate on Thursday.

Smriti is currently placed second in the Hero Order of Merit and would be keen to reduce the gap at the top of the table. However, Smriti is expected to face tough competition from Vani Kapoor, Sharmila Nicollet, Indian origin English golfer Kiran Matharu, Panchkula's Amandeep Drall and local girl Shweta Galande.

This event will also see Delhi's Ayesha Kapur making her debut as a professional.

Delhi youngster Vani has been in excellent form this season with three victories and one runner-up finish in six appearances and currently leads the Order of Merit with total earnings of Rs.6,34,400. Vani would want to move past her dismal performance in sixth leg.

Bengaluru golfer Sharmila, whose return to the tour after a long break hasn't been as per expectations, would also be keen to make her presence felt.