Hua Hin (Thailand), Dec 21 (IANS) India’s 22-year-old rising star Shaurya Bhattacharya endured a late stumble but still secured a second-place finish in the Final Stage of the Asian Tour Qualifying School, earning full playing rights for the 2026 Asian Tour season.

Bhattacharya, who began the final round with a one-shot lead, was firmly in contention for the top spot for much of the day before dropping bogeys on three of the last seven holes. A closing-round 72 left him one stroke short of China’s Lin Yuxin, who claimed victory with a five-round total of 16-under-par at the Lake View Resort & Golf Club.

Lin, a two-time Asia-Pacific Amateur champion, signed for a 67 to edge Bhattacharya, who finished at 15-under. Needing a par on the par-four 18th to force a tie at the top, the Indian bogeyed the hole to settle for second place.

It was an encouraging day overall for Indian golf, with three more players also securing Asian Tour cards by finishing inside the top 35. Rashid Khan carded a 68 to finish tied-15th at 7-under, while Ajeetesh Sandhu surged with a final-round 67 to end tied-19th at 6-under. Shubham Jaglan claimed the final available card after emerging from a five-hole play-off involving 12 players who were tied at 5-under.

Khalin Joshi narrowly missed out, finishing at 4-under after bogeying the final hole. Kartik Singh (74) and Honey Baisoya (78) ended tied-57th, while S Chikkarangappa (73) finished tied-64th, with all three earning limited status.

Bhattacharya, coached by former Asian Games team silver medallist Rahul Bajaj, reflected on a demanding final day but chose to focus on the positives.

“It was a tough last day, but there were a lot of positives,” he said. “I made a lot of birdies this week—27 in total—which is a good number. I play every tournament to win, even if it’s Q-School. I wanted to finish number one, but just couldn’t close it out.”

Currently third on the Professional Golf Tour of India Order of Merit with two wins this season, Bhattacharya capped an outstanding week despite the narrow miss.

Canadian Henry Lee finished third at 14-under after a final-round 70, while Mexico’s Roberto Lebrija (72) was fourth, and Australia’s Will Florimo (70) rounded out the top five.

–IANS

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