Vani Kapoor eyes 7th title of season

A victory at the DGC will also put Vani at par with Smriti Mehra, who holds the record for the maximum number of titles in a season

Upbeat after her sixth victory of the season, Vani Kapoor will start as the firm favourite in the 14th leg of the Hero women’s professional golf tour, commencing on Tuesday, at the Delhi Golf Club. The Rs 7,00,000 event will feature 18 professionals and amateur Shreya Ghei.

Delhi’s Vani, who came up with yet another dominating performance at Jaypee Greens for her sixth victory of the season, is currently second in the Hero Order of Merit with total earnings of `8,69,350 in nine appearances.

A victory at the DGC will also put Vani at par with Smriti Mehra, who holds the record for the maximum number of titles in a season. Vani, however, will find Neha Tripathi, Amandeep Drall and Gursimar Badwal standing in her way.

Kolkata professional Neha has two victories and three runner-up finishes this season. She will be eager to put up a strong performance and consolidate her position atop the money list.

Another strong contender for the title is Panchkula’s Amandeep Drall. She has won three titles in 10 appearances and will be hoping to put forth a strong display.

Kapurthala’s Gursimar Badwal is currently fourth in the Hero Order of Merit in 13 appearances and one title this season. She has been guilty of faltering at key moments on multiple occasions and will be keen to make amends.

Others in the fray will be Delhi’s Ankita Tiwana, Chandigarh’s Saaniya Sharma and Pune’s Shweta Galande. The event will also mark the return of Noida’s Vaishavi Sinha, who will be playing her maiden leg of the season.