On Sunday, August 16, a solitary Bangalore boy took on the elite of professional golf in a tough course at a Golf Major and finished in the top 5.
Did I hear you say, "What?"
Winning is tough even for the best
Let me put things in perspective. The sport of golf gives you a very low win percentage if you play as a professional. Even a golfer in the class of Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer or Gary Player wins around 3-4 tournaments out of 40 in a calendar year normally. And that’s in a good year.
Depending on form, fitness and mental strength, the aim is to finish in the top 25 in the remaining tournaments. In spite of a golfer’s best efforts there will be tournaments where he/she will get eliminated after the first two rounds – when the cut is applied. It’s a ruthless game where the playing conditions change every day and sometimes every hour. However skilled you may be in driving and chipping and putting, the weather gods will play their own tune and luck will play a big role every time you hit the golf course.
There could be years in between tour victories, and every pro golfer is aware of those dark and dangerous days when it feels all too easy to give up and let go. But though the odds are cruel, pro golfers still land up at the starting tee, day in and day out, in search of that elusive jackpot at the end of a Sunday back nine. Niggling injuries get forgotten, inner demons get exorcised, once that elusive win is in sight. More often than not, the first emotion displayed after a win is relief and satisfaction and not unadulterated joy. That is how golf teaches its very best.
Mr Consistency
Anirban Lahiri is undoubtedly India’s best golfer today. He is ranked No. 38 in the world, leads the Asian Tour Order of Merit by a mile, and is in the top 10 of the European Tour Order of Merit today. He has won twice on the European Tour this year – in Malaysia and Delhi – which helped him take that leap from his Asian tour jousts – and since then has been performing consistently.
For the first time in his career, he had a clean run at all the golf majors, the World Golf Championships as well as select appearances in the US PGA Tour – the Holy Grail for all pro golfers. And in typical Lahiri style, more steady and focused than incandescent, he has gone ahead and made this year count as the best so far in his 10 years or so as a pro golfer.
India has produced good golfers before: Arjun Atwal, Jeev Milkha Singh, Jyoti Randhawa and Shiv Kapur have blazed the trail over the years and won numerous laurels across the best tours in the world. But one thing they have all lacked is consistency. Tough as the game is, victories have been few and far between and the gruelling schedules of pro golf have almost inevitably worn each one of them down.
Others, like Gagan Bhullar and Rahil Gangjee, have also had their moments but, again, not consistently enough to make an impact at the elite level. But with Lahiri, you sense something different.
His approach is unique in that he has decided to not rush matters at the highest level. Maybe his interest in meditation helps, but across tournaments you see him perform steadily as he gets used to many different courses in Europe and the US. His approach to the game is unhurried yet not casual.
Lahiri’s tied 5th position in the PGA Championship last week is the best finish ever by an Indian in a major tournament. And yet he has the wisdom to admit that he was not really in contention for the top spot. He is a proven winner today in Asia, but you can sense that his heart is firmly set on performing on the biggest stage of all – the US PGA Tour and the big majors.
And that day, somehow, doesn’t seem too far away. As long as he maintains his form and avoids any major injury, Anirban Lahiri remains our best bet to take Indian golf to greater heights. It might be a tough journey and it will come with its own list of trials and tribulations but as long as Lahiri maintains his icy calm and cool demeanor, the odds will fall in his favor sooner rather than later.
The golfing gods will take care of that.
Rathindra Basu lives, breathes, sleeps sports and is forever waiting for the next Indian sporting triumph. Since this usually takes much time and infinite patience he also listens to music, reads voraciously and eats almost anything that moves.
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Did I hear you say, "What?"
Winning is tough even for the best
Let me put things in perspective. The sport of golf gives you a very low win percentage if you play as a professional. Even a golfer in the class of Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer or Gary Player wins around 3-4 tournaments out of 40 in a calendar year normally. And that’s in a good year.
Depending on form, fitness and mental strength, the aim is to finish in the top 25 in the remaining tournaments. In spite of a golfer’s best efforts there will be tournaments where he/she will get eliminated after the first two rounds – when the cut is applied. It’s a ruthless game where the playing conditions change every day and sometimes every hour. However skilled you may be in driving and chipping and putting, the weather gods will play their own tune and luck will play a big role every time you hit the golf course.
There could be years in between tour victories, and every pro golfer is aware of those dark and dangerous days when it feels all too easy to give up and let go. But though the odds are cruel, pro golfers still land up at the starting tee, day in and day out, in search of that elusive jackpot at the end of a Sunday back nine. Niggling injuries get forgotten, inner demons get exorcised, once that elusive win is in sight. More often than not, the first emotion displayed after a win is relief and satisfaction and not unadulterated joy. That is how golf teaches its very best.
Mr Consistency
Anirban Lahiri is undoubtedly India’s best golfer today. He is ranked No. 38 in the world, leads the Asian Tour Order of Merit by a mile, and is in the top 10 of the European Tour Order of Merit today. He has won twice on the European Tour this year – in Malaysia and Delhi – which helped him take that leap from his Asian tour jousts – and since then has been performing consistently.
For the first time in his career, he had a clean run at all the golf majors, the World Golf Championships as well as select appearances in the US PGA Tour – the Holy Grail for all pro golfers. And in typical Lahiri style, more steady and focused than incandescent, he has gone ahead and made this year count as the best so far in his 10 years or so as a pro golfer.
India has produced good golfers before: Arjun Atwal, Jeev Milkha Singh, Jyoti Randhawa and Shiv Kapur have blazed the trail over the years and won numerous laurels across the best tours in the world. But one thing they have all lacked is consistency. Tough as the game is, victories have been few and far between and the gruelling schedules of pro golf have almost inevitably worn each one of them down.
Others, like Gagan Bhullar and Rahil Gangjee, have also had their moments but, again, not consistently enough to make an impact at the elite level. But with Lahiri, you sense something different.
His approach is unique in that he has decided to not rush matters at the highest level. Maybe his interest in meditation helps, but across tournaments you see him perform steadily as he gets used to many different courses in Europe and the US. His approach to the game is unhurried yet not casual.
Lahiri’s tied 5th position in the PGA Championship last week is the best finish ever by an Indian in a major tournament. And yet he has the wisdom to admit that he was not really in contention for the top spot. He is a proven winner today in Asia, but you can sense that his heart is firmly set on performing on the biggest stage of all – the US PGA Tour and the big majors.
And that day, somehow, doesn’t seem too far away. As long as he maintains his form and avoids any major injury, Anirban Lahiri remains our best bet to take Indian golf to greater heights. It might be a tough journey and it will come with its own list of trials and tribulations but as long as Lahiri maintains his icy calm and cool demeanor, the odds will fall in his favor sooner rather than later.
The golfing gods will take care of that.
Rathindra Basu lives, breathes, sleeps sports and is forever waiting for the next Indian sporting triumph. Since this usually takes much time and infinite patience he also listens to music, reads voraciously and eats almost anything that moves.
