Chirag, Gangjee eyeing good show at Panasonic Open

A runners-up finish at Venetian Macau Open secured his Asian Tour card and Indian golfer Chirag Kumar is now eyeing a good show at Panasonic Open starting at the DGC on Thursday.
"I didn't play too many tournaments this year. I became a dad at the beginning of the year and also we had a long off season. I spent a lot of time with my daughter Aynaz at home. I played India Open and one or two events so eight months I haven't played much," Chirag said.
"I have started playing a lot in the last 5-6 weeks. The highlight is obviously the second place finish at Macau Open last month. I finally got some form after a long time. So I am looking forward to a strong finish in the next few events. If I can put four days together, I am sure I will be able to put up a good show this week," he added.

Talking about his past performance at the Panasonic Open, Chirag said: "I have done decent in this tournament in the last five years but obviously not as much as I would have liked. Hopefully that will change soon."
"It is really important psychologically to have a good performance under your belt. You know you are playing well so your confidence is high," he said.
Talking about the Delhi Golf Course, he said: "The DGC poses a new challenge everytime you play here. So you have to keep it straight off the tee and basically keep it in play. I think anywhere between 16 to 20 under should be a good score. I hope I can play well. I am excited about the event."

His joint runner-up finish at the USD one million Venetian Macau Open was his best result since 2011 and it helped him secure his Asian Tour card for next season.

"I have already locked my card. So I am really looking forward to playing in the big sanctioned events and take it as it comes and see how it goes," said the 31-year-old, who had narrowly missed out on a full card when he finished 65th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit last year.
The fifth edition of the Panasonic Open India will offer a prize purse of USD 400,000, an increase of USD 100,000 from past editions.

India's Rahil Gangjee and Sri Lanka's Mithun Perera, who lost last year's play-off to SSP Chawrasia, will be among the elite field of golfers, including two-time Asian Tour number one Thaworn Wiratchant, Jyoti Randhawa and Gaganjeet Bhullar.