Pranavi Urs made history at the IGPL Invitational Mumbai, becoming the first woman ever to hold a share of the lead at any stage on the IGPL Tour.
A sparkling 6-under 62 at the par-68 Bombay Presidency Golf Club catapulted her to the top of the leaderboard, where she finished the opening day tied with Karandeep Kochhar.
Playing her first IGPL event, Pranavi already a winner at BPGC through the Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour was in sublime touch. Her round featured eight birdies and two bogeys, highlighted by two separate stretches of three consecutive birdies, first from the 4th to the 6th and then again from the 10th to the 12th. Five of her birdies came on the back nine, where she looked fully in command.
Kochhar, her partner of over two years, had set the clubhouse target moments earlier, finishing eagle–par–eagle for his own 62. His round included two eagles, three birdies, and a lone bogey on the 4th. Kochhar, playing only his second IGPL event and arriving fresh off his maiden international win in Egypt, acknowledged that he did not start with his best rhythm but managed to build momentum, especially with his electrifying close.
“I think I hung in there all day,” Kochhar said. “I didn’t have my A-game at the start, but I finished really strong. The eagle on 16 was a lucky long putt, but on 18 I hit two great shots and left myself four to five feet for the eagle.”
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The couple will now play the second round together an unusual but welcome prospect. Pranavi laughed as she looked ahead: “We often discuss our game with each other, but tomorrow we will try to beat each other.”
A Breakthrough Performance for Pranavi
The 23-year-old, who competes on the Ladies European Tour, credited accuracy and discipline for her historic round. “Overall my game was good the hitting was good and my putting was good,” she said. “On this course, hitting the fairway makes life easier. I gave myself a lot of opportunities and took advantage of them. Twice I had three birdies in a row, and that really helped.”
She added that while she and Kochhar talk golf, they maintain healthy boundaries. “We discuss things to a limit we don’t overdo it. He doesn’t tell me what to do and I don’t tell him what to do. But if one of us is confused, we talk through the pros and cons.”
Women Shine on Opening Day
It was a landmark day for women’s golf at the event. Four women finished inside the top 10:
- Pranavi – T-1
- Vani Kapoor – T-6
- Durga Nittur – T-6
- Ridhima Dilawari – T-9
All four produced composed, high-quality golf in conditions that rewarded disciplined strategy off the tee.
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Trailing the leaders is two-time winner Aman Raj, the current IGPL Order of Merit frontrunner, who opened with a 4-under 64 to sit third. Aman closed his round with back-to-back birdies and said the rest after a heavy playing stretch earlier in the season helped him regain rhythm. “It was a nice finish and 4-under is a good score. I saved some really good pars today,” he said.
In fourth place at 3-under 65 are Kartik Singh and Shaurya Binu. Kartik, one of the standout performers this year despite not securing a win, described his day as solid but felt he left shots out there. “It was a good day, but a lot of putts didn’t fall,” the teenager said.
A packed group at T-6 on 2-under 66 includes Pukhraj Singh Gill, Vani Kapoor, and Durga Nittur, all well within striking distance heading into the second round.
Amateur Ranveer Mitroo, along with Ridhima Dilawari, Sachin Baisoya, Saarthak Chhibber, Manav Shah, Shat Mishra, and veteran SSP Chawrasia, all returned 1-under 67 to tie for ninth.
