Sunny Masih and Minhaj Warraich emerge as leaders in 9th JA Zaman Open Golf

LAHORE – The six days 9th JA Zaman Memorial Open Golf Championship being held in memory of the noblest of icons JA Zaman is in progress at the historic par 72 Lahore Gymkhana Golf Course.  

Out of the six days, two (Tuesday and Wednesday) were reserved for events like veterans, senior amateurs and lady amateurs. The following four days starting from Thursday to Sunday (18 holes round each day) were days for the professional golf champions of the country, 98 of whom were eligible to seek appealing cash prizes totaling Rs 6 million as well as honors in the shape of the esteemed JA Zaman Golf title. 

Another segment of golfers falling in the grading men amateurs would compete over three days starting from Friday. Regarding senior golf professionals and junior golf professionals, the assigned days were Wednesday and Thursday, 18 holes each day adding up to a total of 36 holes. 

And as for the golfing activity during the 18 holes on Thursday, the 98 golf professionals played with self-assurance, golfing grace and equilibrium and as the 18 holes concluded the front runners were two bright young stars of the national golf circuit. Sunny Masih of Lahore Gymkhana, a product of the Jinnah Development Tour was one and a youthful Minhaj Warraich of Rawalpindi Golf Club another one. 

Both these professionals are on the rise and showed their capabilities by appearing as joint leaders in this Zaman Family-backed golf championship through similar scores of gross 68, four under par. This amazing score of gross 68 was achieved through praiseworthy hitting off the tees, crisp and sharp shot making from the fairways and nerve free putting on the greens. Sunny’s hole by hole performance was five birdies on holes 2,8,10,15 and 16, twelve regulation pars and one bogie on the 6th hole, a real meritorious show of golf playing ability. 

Analysis of Minhaj’s round was birdies on holes 1,5,7,13 and 15 (five in all), regulation pars on twelve holes and a single bogie on the 4th hole. While Sunny and Minhaj have surfaced as leaders, they have two accomplished adversaries in the form of M Munir (Rawalpindi) and Ahmed Baig (Royal Palm) placed just one stroke behind them. Munir played a round of gross 69, three under par and Ahmed Baig also played gross 69, three under par. 

Matloob Ahmed (Lahore Garrison) is at gross 70 followed by eight golf professionals bunched together at a score of gross 71, one under par, their names being Usman Ali (Garrison), Talat Ijaz (Gymkhana), Amjad Yousaf (Margalla Greens), Abdul Zahoor (Multan), Aamir Khan (Peshawar), M Imran (Defence Raya), M Rehman (Royal Palm) and Bilal Khan (Sargodha).  

At a score of gross 72 are placed ten golf professionals. They are M Sajid, M Shahzad, Kashif Masih, M Alam, Akbar Mehroz, Shahid Javed Khan, Waheed Baloch, Syed Bilal Hussain, Khalid Khan and the great one Shabbir Iqbal, winner of 200 titles. The tee off today (Friday) will take place at 7am at Lahore Gymkhana Golf Course.