New Delhi: In-form Honey Baisoya, fresh from his win at the DP World Players Championship at the Qutab Golf Course earlier this month, was the flavour of the auction, drawing the highest bid for the upcoming 72 The League — PGTI’s franchise-based competition — here on Monday.
The six teams who were part of the auction were Delhi-based Capital Lancers, Hyderabad-based Charminar Champions, Kolkata Classics, Mumbai Aces, Rajasthan Regals, and UP Prometheans. A total of 170 Indian pros and 12 foreigners from seven different countries were part of the auction pool.
The inaugural edition of the league will take off on February 21 and will be held across courses in Delhi-NCR — Classic Golf & Country Club, Jaypee Greens, and Qutab Golf Course.
The 29-year-old Baisoya, who had a decent last season as well where he logged eight top-10 finishes, went to Delhi-based Capital Lancers for ₹20.5 lakh after a three-way bidding war with Rajasthan Regals and Kolkata Classics. Bracketed in the Platinum category for a base price of ₹10 lakh, Baisoya drew interest from all franchises at the onset but Lancers kept raising the stakes, eventually snapping him.
Closely following Baisoya was Shubham Jaglan who sparked an intense bidding war among all six franchises. Placed in Silver category for a base price of ₹3 lakh, Jaglan went to Hyderabad-based Charminar Champions, who warded off a strong challenge from Capital Lancers and Mumbai Aces, for Rs.19 lakh, over six times his base price. Touted as the next big thing in Indian golf, the 21-year-old Gurugram-based golfer won the PGTI Q-School just last month and has the experience of playing in the US. A product of University of South Florida, Jaglan competed in the PGA Tour Americas last year and made the cut thrice in nine outings.
PGA Americas is a pathway to qualify for the Korn Ferry Tour and the final stage of the PGA Tour Q-School.
Another Indian who drew immense interest in the auction was Arjun Prasad, who had two top-10 finishes this month — eight at DP World Players Championship and ninth at the SECL Chhattisgarh Open Golf Championship. He went to UP Prometheans for Rs. 18 lakh as the third highest Indian grosser of the day.
Young Kartik Singh, who plied his trade at the breakaway IGPL last season, has switched back to PGTI and came to the auction as one of the most sought-after pros.
The 16-year-old, having entered the pool in the Silver category at a base price of Rs.3 lakh, went for an impressive Rs.14.40 lakh to Mumbai Aces after a stiff and prolonged bidding war with Lancers and Charminar Champions.
Besides the young guns, the auction also rewarded experience with Indian golf veteran Mukesh Kumar, 60, going to Kolkata Classics for ₹7 lakh. Among the international pros, USA’s Jhared Hack led the way at Rs.15.80 lakh, courtesy some aggressive bidding from Capital Lancers.
“It’s an idea whose time has come. We believe leagues are a great way to make the game more palatable to the audiences,” PGTI CEO Amandeep Johl said.
