By Abhishek Roy, IANS
New Delhi : The much-awaited inaugural EMAAR-MGF Indian Masters, the first European Tour event in the country, which begins Thursday, will see some of the top golfers of Asia and Europe tee off at the 72-par Lodhi Course at the Delhi Golf Club (DGC) here.
World No.4 Ernie Els of South Africa will lead the field with Englishman David Howell and American Mark O’Meara, while the Indian challenge will be led by world No.85 Jyoti Randhawa and No.91 Jeev Milkha Singh.
Arjun Atwal, who was the first Indian to win on European Tour and play on the US Tour, will also be playing alongside after a gap of three years. But the last minute withdrawal by Asian No.8 Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand and Sweden’s Michael Jonzon owing to flu has been a disappointment for the organisers.
Initial plans to bring down the par for the Lodhi Course to 71 were abandoned Monday evening after the professionals complained that it was too difficult. They wanted to reduce the par for the 14th hole, from five to four. The 516-yard hole has often been seen as an easy birdie and the idea was to create a challenge for the golfers. But after a practice round, the golfers faltered at the same hole and the tournament director reverted back to the original par-72 in order to help them get a good score.
The course, which has undergone some modifications in the last five months, will continue to challenge the golfers as they will have to keep a balance between power and skill. Three tees, 3rd, 7th and 10th, have been pushed back and in the process 126 yards have been added to the course making it 7,014 yards. Five bunkers have also been taking the numbers of bunkers to 70.
With the class of golfers taking part in the tournament, sanctioned also by the Asian Tour and the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI), the contest should be a close one.
Els, who started the season with a dramatic loss to world No.1 Tiger Woods, in the Dubai Desert Classic, Sunday is looking forward to win here.
“It was a dissapointing loss last week. It was my first tournament of the season and I should have won it at least by one stroke. But, it was good beginning, as it doesn’t get better than losing to world No.1. Hopefully I will have a good weekend here,” said Els, after Wednesday’s practice round.
Els have been clubbed with Dane Thomas Bjorn and Jeev in the first round making it an exciting group to follow.
Jeev, a former Asian No.1, is also upbeat about his chances as the DGC is like his second home and he is well aware of the fact that patience will be the key to success.
“It is a very demanding course and you have to be very patient on it. You have got to plan lot of shots, especially off the tee and you can’t get too aggressive,” Jeev said.
“The main thing I find on this course is that you have to keep the ball in play off the tee. If we can do that, everything will fall simply in place after that. Off the tee, I think, is the key to leave you well with a better chance of making a birdie,” he added.
“Even if you hit the bush, you have to take your medicine and move on and don’t try to get aggressive. If you get aggressive, it is going to come up and bite you.”
The newly married Jeev went on to add that he has been playing well and was confident of a good show at the imposing Lodhi Course. In his last tournament at this venue last year, Indian Open, he finished tied 19th, but that is not going to bother him much.
For another Indian, Atwal, who had a poor season on the US Tour, the Indian Masters is of prime importance. A win in the Asian Tour will give him a big boost before he embarks on the Nationwide Tour in March in the US. The year 2007 was an eminently forgettable one for Atwal, who barely stayed in the top-60 of the Nationwide Tour, the second rung tour in US. On the main US PGA Tour, he made the cut in only six of the 12 starts and finished 210th.
“I had three months off, so I practiced really hard and worked on my game and it is pretty good now. I really like playing here (DGC). In fact my last win in 2003 was on this course and I am looking forward to some nice and exciting golf,” he said.
Atwal’s last tournament at home was the Indian Open in 2005, when he finished 11th. His last win at home was also at the same venue in 2003 at the Hero Honda Masters.