Lahiri finishes ninth in Queen`s Cup

Samui (Thailand): Young Indian golfer Anirban Lahiri played himself into contention with a superb run of four birdies between the third and tenth holes, only to see his chances fade away with a double bogey on 14th followed by another bogey on 16th on the final day of the Queen`s Cup here Sunday.The Indian youngster, who had earlier in the season finished fourth at the Black Mountain Masters, finished with a 70 and ended at nine-under 275 in tied ninth place.

Lahiri said: "I`m quite happy with my four days. Had a couple of hiccups on the back nine but that`s golf. I played solid and I`m happy I got into contention. If I can keep doing that, hopefully I can convert one. I didn`t do that the past three weeks so I`m happy that I did well despite the odds. I`m quite pleased. I need to do some work on my short game. Anybody can win as long as you hole putts." Among other Indians Himmat Rai displayed his potential with a card of 70 despite a four-hole stretch from 11th to 14th when he had three bogeys. His five-under total of 279 fetched him a share of 14th place, his best on Asian Tour. C. Muniyappa (69) was two-over for the week in tied 35th place, while Rahil Gangjee (79) ended tied 53rd after a miserable final round. Meanwhile, Thailand`s Chinnarat Phadungsil grabbed the title with a stylish three-shot victory to claim his third Asian Tour title. Still only 20, the power-packed Chinnarat reinforced his credentials as the future king of Asian golf with a superb four-under-par 67 in the final round at the Santiburi Samui Country Club to end a glorious week on 16-under-par 268. Three birdies over his closing five holes saw Chinnarat push Japan`s Yoshinobu Tsukada (71), Kim Dae-hyun of Korea (68) and compatriot Udorn Duangdecha (67) into a share of second place in the $300,000 Asian Tour event, sponsored by the Sports Authority of Thailand and Bangkok Airways. "I can`t believe that I have won three times before my 21st birthday but this week, I hit it really good," said a delighted Chinnarat, who won $47,550. "It feels fantastic to win the Queen`s Cup. At the turn (where he led by two), I knew I could win. I aimed for pars and then went for birdies over the closing few holes." The 39-year-old Tsukada, who was chasing his first professional victory, struggled all day on the greens and suffered a costly three-putt par at the last hole to fall into a share of second place with a final round of 71. South Africa`s Keith Horne and Thammanoon Srirot of Thailand finished joint fifth on 272 with the promising Kiradech Aphibarnrat of Thailand a further stroke back. IANS