Spotlight on Vani, Sharmila in Hero golf

Bangalore, July 8 (IANS) Current Order of Merit leader Vani Kapoor will be eager to get back to winning ways in the eighth leg of the Hero Women's Professional Golf Tour commencing at the KGA Golf Course here Wednesday.

Vani has played impressive golf this season and would be keen to capitalise on her top spot in the money list after a minor slip up in the seventh leg earlier last month in Srinagar.

The eighth leg will also witness the return of local golfer Sharmila Nicolett, leading the attack on Vani on her home course after her stint on the Ladies European Tour (LET) the whole of last month. Nicolett is the only Indian to retain her LET card for two consecutive years.

With total earnings of Rs.7.4 lakh from four victories and two runner-up positions in seven starts, Vani will be the player to watch out for at KGA.

She would, however, face stiff competition from Ankita Tiwana, who is currently placed second in the Merit list, Pune's Shweta Galande, Kolkata's Neha Tripathi and Chandigarh golfer Saaniya Sharma.

Veteran Smriti Mehra will skip the eighth leg. The Rs.5 lakh event will see a total of 16 golfers (10 professionals and six amateurs) fighting for the top honours.

The tour comprises a total of 15 rounds spanning across India.