Cheema, Dhull and Bainsla lead home sweep at weather‑hit US Kids Indian Championship

Nihal Cheema, Drona Singh Dhull and Prince Bainsla on the boys’ side, and Naaysha S Sinha, Gairat Kaur Kahlon and Shiksha Jain among the girls, were the standout performers at the fifth US Kids Golf Indian Championship at Classic Golf and Country Club. Difficult weather and smog forced the committee to cut the final round in all categories to nine holes, but local players still swept every title with composed scoring in testing conditions.

Cheema was the only player in the field to shoot par or better on all three days, cruising to a dominant win over long‑time rival Zowra Sikand in Boys 8 with nine‑hole rounds of 36-34-33, including a bogey‑free final day with three birdies. Dhull produced the round of the week in Boys 11, firing a four‑under 32 for nine holes with four birdies and no bogeys, while Bainsla, whose opening 66 was the low 18‑hole score of the championship, closed out Boys 15–18 ahead of the ultra‑steady Shashank Sachin Gadre, who returned three straight pars for the week, with Arshvant Srivastava in third.

In the girls’ divisions, Aanya Dandriyal and Malaysia’s Choi Quinn Cie delivered one of the tightest battles in Girls 11–12, both finishing on 196 for 45 holes before Dandriyal edged the title on a tiebreaker after a regulation round that included an eagle and a birdie against four bogeys. Preitisha Kaur Gill impressed in Girls 15–18, while Naaysha S Sinha (Girls 8), Gairat Kaur Kahlon (Girls 9–10) and Shiksha Jain (Girls 13–14) all underlined their status as emerging forces on the junior circuit.

Other notable winners in the boys’ section included Taanush Kumar in Boys 9, Vedaansh Jain in Boys 10, Siddhant Sharma in Boys 12 and Arihaan Beri in Boys 13–14, showcasing depth across every age band. For the first time, prize money was introduced for all podium finishers, with winners earning ₹25,000, second and third place receiving ₹10,000 each and the next three positions paid ₹5,000, in addition to the existing Priority Status pathway into international US Kids events.

Rajesh Srivastava, President and Founder of US Kids Golf India and Asia, said the cash prizes were designed to recognise the investment families make in junior golf and confirmed plans to bring foreign coaches to India and send leading players overseas for training. He added that US Kids events have already expanded to nearly a dozen Asian countries, with an Asian Championship on a top‑class championship course planned within a year and a bigger local tour schedule, including a full Skills Contest programme and a split‑season series with roughly double the number of events.

Photo – US Kids / Some of the winners of 2025 US Kids Indian Championship – from left – Nihal Cheema, Naaysha Sinha, Drona Singh Dhull, Aanya Dandriyal and Prince Bainsla