Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma registers first top-10 finish of year on European Tour

Rome: Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma rounded off the week with a three-under 68 for a total of nine-under 275 to finish tied seventh at the Italian Open. Shubhankar, with 21 birdies and an eagle, on Sunday topped the chart for strokes gained from approaches but he also gave away a lot bogeys, as many as a dozen and a double bogey, too. [caption id=“attachment_5575211” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Shubhankar Sharma. AP[/caption] It was Shubhankar’s first top-10 finish outside India since Hong Kong. His only top-10 this year has been tied second on the Indian PGTI Tour in February. Yet his tied seventh finish was his best since the tied sixth in Hong Kong more than 11 months ago. It also saw him move from 113th to 80th on the Race to Dubai standings and he now needs a final push to get into top-50 for a start in the DP World Tour Championships next month. Shubhankar’s return to form has seen him record three rounds in the 60s in four of the last six starts. India’s other player in the field, SSP Chawrasia, who fought well to make the cut, shot his second 68 this week to finish at one-over and tied-57th. Gaganjeet Bhullar missed the cut. American Kurt Kitayama, a one-time winner on the Asian Tour and two-time winner on the European Tour, finished third on 12-under after a 71, a shot clear of England’s Andrew Johnston (68), Scot Robert MacIntyre (71) and another Austrian in Matthias Schwab (66), who shared fourth spot at 11-under par. Korea’s Jeunghun Wang capped his second top-10 result in three weeks after signing for a 71 to grab a share of the 10th place on 276. Thai star Thongchai Jaidee also posted a 71 to finish tied 34th place. Bernd Wiesberger claimed his second Rolex Series title of 2019 and third European Tour victory as he rallied from three shots behind overnight leader Matthew Fitzpatrick. The Austrian carded a bogey-free final round of 65 to finish one shot clear of the Englishman ay 16-under par. Fitzpatrick, who was hit by a double on ninth, staged an impressive fightback with three birdies in his final six holes, but fell one stroke short. Fitzpatrick signed for a round of 69 for a total of 15-under par as he finished runner up for the fourth time this season. The 34-year-old Wiesberger became the fifth player to win multiple Rolex Series titles after his maiden win in the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open in July.