By IANS,
New Delhi : Spending more time with the doctors than at the golf course or the driving range, Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia, who came up with a sensational triumph at the same course in February, is simply hoping to be able to play four rounds as he tees off at the US$ 1 million Hero Honda Indian Open Thursday.
Chowrasia registered a breakthrough win in Indian Masters but has since suffered a severe drop in form. “But I hope the Delhi Golf Club will once again change things,” he said.
“It feels good to be back. I hope to play well and finish strong,” said Chowrasia, who will be backed by a strong local contingent including defending champion Jyoti Randhawa, Jeev Milkha Singh, Gaurav Ghei and Digvijay Singh.
Sweden’s Daniel Chopra, with two wins on the US PGA Tour, will join the top contenders list this week alongside New Zealand’s Mark Brown, who is the current leader on the Asian Tour’s Order of Merit, and Chinese star Liang Wen-chong.
Despite the wrist injury which has hampered his play in recent weeks, Chowrasia is pleased to return on a course which had landed him a maiden triumph on the Asian Tour at the Emaar-MGF Indian Masters in February.
“I hope to play four solid rounds here like what I did previously. I know this course well. But I injured my right wrist two months ago and it still hurts. It was actually an old injury, which happened four years ago and the pain is back again.
“It hurts a lot when I use my driver. But I’m not too worried because this course is quite short and requires solid iron game. If I can hit it straight, then the rest will take care of itself,” added the 30-year-old Kolkata-based player.
New Zealand star Brown is eager to steal the show in a country, which had brought him back-to-back wins this season at the Sail Open and Johnnie Walker Classic.
“It’s great to be playing here and I love Delhi. It’s a bit warmer now than when I was here before. The course is going to be tight and difficult and it’s a great test. It’s a nice feeling to be back in a country where I’ve won twice before.
“My form has been inconsistent. It was disappointing in Europe. I played well in Japan but played poorly again in Korea. It’s been up and down but I hope to regain my momentum in India.
“To win a golf tournament is difficult and it would be nice to get back to form here in India. We have Jyoti, Jeev and a lot of other good players here, so I hope to keep it on target and get in the mix this week,” said Brown.
China’s Liang, who was last year’s Asian Tour number one, is pleased to make his second appearance in India this year.
“I have been doing a lot of travelling this year trying to find where I fit in. But I always enjoy playing on the Asian Tour and feel comfortable here.
“I’m happy with my game. I’ve produced a top-10 on this course before so I hope to finish even better this week,” said Liang, who posted three top-10 finishes this season.
Former Asian Tour number one and the 2005 Indian Open champion, Thaworn will be hoping to regain his footing at the Delhi Golf after a slow run in the past two weeks.
“I am quite disappointed with my form in the last two weeks. I don’t feel good about my game at the moment. The course is short and hopefully this week will see a change in my game,” said Thaworn, who won a record 10th Asian Tour title at the Bangkok Airways Open in June.