Gurugram, March 17 – Twenty-one-year-old rookie Aryav Shah of Kolkata shot a four-under 68 to take the lead after the first round of the INR 25 lakh DP World PGTI NexGen 2026 tournament, which was held at the Golden Greens Golf & Country Club in Gurugram on Tuesday.
Ayaan Gupta, Lakshya Nagar, and Malaysia’s Ruhanraj Vinayagam all scored three-under 69 to tie for third place. Like Aryav, Ayaan and Ruhanraj are also playing their debut season on the DP World PGTI.
Aryav Shah had a slow start to the round, making two birdies and two bogeys. However, he played a strong back nine, making four birdies.
The 54-hole event featured a field of 90 players. The top 35 players and ties will make the cut at the end of round two on Wednesday.
The NexGen Tour was launched by the PGTI last year with the objective of providing equal playing opportunities to all professional golfers in India and to increase the pool of talented golfers in Indian golf, which in turn increases competition and the overall level of golf. The NexGen also aims to bring professional golf to Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities in India, thus expanding the reach of the sport within the country.
Participants in the 2026 PGTI Qualifying School are eligible to compete on the NexGen Tour in 2026. The winner of this year's NexGen Order of Merit will receive an exemption to compete on the main tour (DP World PGTI) for the 2027 season.
The 2026 NexGen season began with the first event at the Aravalli Golf Club in Faridabad. Abhishek Kumar produced a tournament-low score of eight-under 64 in the third and final round, achieving a sensational victory from behind, which featured 72 players.
The second event was the NexGen Phillaur Open 2026, which was held from March 3–5 at the Ranjitgarh Golf Club in Phillaur, and Lucknow-based Armyman Rajesh Kumar Gautam (70-67-70) edged out Pankaj Maandiya (68-70-69) and Aditya Raj Singh Chahal (69-69-69) in a three-hole playoff to win the title after the trio finished the regulation 54 holes with matching totals of six-under 207.
The next NexGen event was held at the Lucknow Golf Club from March 10–12, while the final NexGen event of the 2026 season will be held at the Patna Golf Club from March 24–26.
The prize money for each NexGen event has been increased from INR 20 lakh to INR 25 lakh this season.