Vani Kapoor chases glory at Hero Women’s Indian Open

Golf rewards patience, and Vani Kapoor is certainly someone who has persevered long enough for a slice of history at the US$ 500,000 Hero Women’s Indian Open (HWIO). 

Vani, the 54-hole leader at the DLF Golf and Country Club, awaits that magical moment on the Ladies European Tour (LET) on Sunday, as a reward for her perseverance through the years.

As we know, golf can be a fickle sport, and reputations can be built or otherwise over 18 holes. For now, Vani will soak in the moment that the onus of having an Indian win back the country's national open is on her, since Aditi Ashok pulled it off a decade ago in 2016.

As it has been through the week, the tightly packed leaderboard will leave little room for error. At 5-under 211 (73, 69, 69), the lead for Vani over the pair of defending champion Shannon Tan of Singapore at 4-under 212 (68, 77, 67) and Thailand’s three-time HWIO winner Pornanong Phatlum (72, 71, 69) is slender.

She says she is thankful that she is surrounded by family and friends to help her stay grounded. “They will keep reminding me that 18 holes are left, and there is work to be done, and that will help,” said Vani as she attempts to breach a summit she has never scaled.

Indians stand out

Saturday turned out to be a profitable day for the Indian brigade. Battling illness and fatigue, Pranavi Urs, overnight T-2, slipped, but only just and finished in a tie for fourth with Argentina’s Magdalena Simmermacher at the end of Round 3.

It was a show of resilience, and had exhaustion not got the better of her on the back nine, the Hero Brand Ambassador Pranavi could have finished under-par for the third day running.

With the body virtually not responding to the mind, errors crept in and the dropped shots set her back on the final stretch.

“The body is still recovering, and I know it is going to be a grind out there again tomorrow,” said Pranavi.

Tied with Magdalena (68, 72, 73) at 213, Pranavi (70, 70, 73) will regroup and mount a fresh challenge in what will be a second shot at a title shortly after her historic Asian Games gold in Japan.

Another Hero Brand Ambassador, Tvesa Malik (71, 73, 71; 215) is also in the mix, courtesy of a steady round of 1-under for the day for the sole 8th position.

Building on the past

Golf isn’t a sport that encourages reflection on the day gone by, but Vani made an exception by reminding herself of the eagle-birdie stretch on Friday. She never let go of the impetus after that, and Saturday’s Moving Day bloomed into one of her best rounds on her home course.

The putter fluent, and the emotions in check, Vani is ready for D-Day. “I’m pretty stable and didn’t get too excited. It is something I was careful of. That’s the plan with one more day to go,” she said.

Proficiency at its peak

Since her ascent as a top name on the LET the past few seasons, Shannon Tan hasn’t been accustomed to shooting a 77, and overshooting the runway in Gurugram on Friday stirred the 2025 LET Order of Merit champion.

Commencing in a frenzy, Shannon’s five birdies in six holes on the front nine on Saturday seemed as if she wasn’t competing on the Tour’s toughest golf course.

It was an exhibition of attacking golf, seldom seen in these parts, but the defending champion put it softly as, “When you’re playing well on this course, you can actually go quite low.”

Given the start, Shannon could have wrested the lead again, but the strained wrist that she admits has been brought about by overuse prevented her from cutting loose on the back nine, as she kept shielding the taped area.

Top Scores:

Vani Kapoor (IND): 73-69-69 (-5); Shannon Tan (SIN): 68-77-67; Pornanong Phatlum (THA): 72-71-69 (-4); Magdalena Simmermacher (ARG): 68-72-73; Pranavi Urs (IND): 70-70-73 (-3); Camille Chevalier (FRA): 71-70-73; Sara Kouskova (CZE): 69-72-73 (-2); Tvesa Malik (IND): 71-73-71 (-1); Ursula Wikstrom (FIN): 71-72-73 (E); Patricia Isabel Schmidt (GER): 75-73-69; Liz Young (ENG): 75-71-71; Ariane Klotz (FRA): 72-70-75; Chiara Tamburlini (SUI): 67-71-79 (+1).