Swadesh Gurung wins Turkish golf

Turkish Airlines held the Kathmandu leg of its 10th World Golf Cup on 18 May at the Gokarna Forest Resort Golf Club as a part of the world’s most comprehensive amateur golf tournaments.

Over 10,000 participants across 83 countries competed against each other in 130 tournaments this year, with the Kathmandu leg ranking 20th out of 130, and featuring 84 male and female participants.

Despite the pre-monsoon drizzle on Sunday, among the spectators cheering on the players on Gokarna’s fairway were golf enthusiasts, a troop of Gokarna's resident monkeys and herds of deer.

The tournament was played in the Stableford format. Instead of counting total strokes, it awards players points based on their score relative to par for the hole. Two or more shots above par is zero, one above par is one point, par is two, and so on.

This is a format often used for amateur golf tournaments or ones that need to be completed quickly, as players move on immediately to the next hole if they are already two above par. The tournament also featured a 3/4 handicap, which makes for more balanced play between players of different skill levels.

Swadesh Gurung, who directs marketing at Civil Mall, scored 42 points to clinch the title. Gurung was closely followed by Ang Dendi Sherpa and Pradip KC, both on 41. Ang Dembi was declared runner up, due to a slightly better performance over the last nine holes.

Gurung wins a roundtrip Business Class flight to Istanbul and an all-expenses paid stay at the Gloria Serenity Resort in Antalya on the Turkish Golden Coast, where he will compete in the Grand Finals against the winners of the other legs of the tournament.

Other awards this week included Wangchen Dhondup for ‘The Gross Award’, and Manohar Das Mool and Bipana Shrestha for ‘The Closest to the Pin’ competition.

“We thank all of our guests who made the Turkish Airlines World Golf Cup here in Kathmandu a huge success. Once again, it was a thrilling tournament in the TAWGC series, congratulations to our winner, Swadesh Gurung. We wish him the best of luck in Türkiye,” said Turkish Airlines General Manager in Kathmandu, Serkan Başar.

The Turkish Airlines World Golf Cup was first held in 2013, with 12 qualifying rounds in 12 countries, initially only as a platform to engage and network with the airlines’ corporate clients and sponsors. The size of the tournament grew each year until the 2019 edition featured over 100 qualifying events in 71 countries.

The tournament was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic, and made a comeback in 2023 and 2024. Last year’s Kathmandu qualifier, held on May 5 2024, was won by Kanchan Basnyat also with 42 points.

The history of golf in Nepal dates back to the early 20th century. It was likely introduced during the Rana period by General Kiran Shumsher, who had seen the sport being played in Scotland. The first course was set up at Gauchar in Kathmandu and was rudimentary, with sand mixed with oil forming ‘browns’ that were used as ‘greens’. Some of the first players were King Tribhuvan and his son, Prince Basundhara. King Mahendra named it the Royal Nepal Golf Club in 1965. But the course had to be shortened due the expansion of Kathmandu airport, and moved to the Pashupati Development Trust land. It will have to be relocated again to accommodate the airport’s new international terminal building.

There are now at least six other courses across the country, including the Himalayan Golf Club and Yeti’s Golf Course in Pokhara, the private Nirvana Country Club in Dharan, the private Chaudhary Industrial Village Golf Course in Nawalparasi, the world’s highest golf course (4645m) in Lomanthang, Upper Mustang, the Royal Nepal Golf Course, and the Gokarna Forest Resort Golf Club. Gokarna, spanning 6,715 yards over 470 acres, is the only 18-hole course.

A round of golf is about Rs11,000 on weekdays, and about Rs14,000 on weekends and public holidays, and the resort also offers a tour around the course on a golf cart.