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Jeev Milkha Singh will be vying to add the one title on the Indian circuit missing from his kit the Indian Open when the flagship golf event tees off in December here, but it won't be easy. Despite his global achievements, Jeev will have to battle a tough field that sees the big three of Indian golf Arjun Atwal and Jyoti Randhawa being the other two come together on Indian soil after a long time.
Randhawa is the only Indian and only the second golfer to have won the title thrice while Jeev last played in the event in 2008, finishing fourth.
Atwal, who made history by becoming the first Indian to clinch a PGA title by lifting the Wyndham Championship in August, won the Indian Open way back in 1999 and but finished a disappointing joint 33rd last year. Apart from him, Jeev and Randhawa, other Indians in the fray include defending champion C Muniyappa, Shiv Kapur, Anirban Lahiri and SSP Chowrasia. In all, the event would feature 38 Indians 30 professionals and eight amateurs.
Besides, Indian-origin Swedish player Daniel Chopra and 2008 champion Liang Wen-chong of China are also in competition.
Back where it began
With the tournament returning to the Delhi Golf Club where the first edition was held in 1964 after a brief break, the 47th edition of the event will see some of the biggest names in Indian golf vying for one of the biggest winner's purses on the Asian tour. The $1.25 million Asian Tour and the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) co-sanctioned event tees off on December 2. Unveiling the Indian Open trophy here, the organisers hoped the change in schedule of the event from its regular October timetable due to the Commonwealth Games would not make any difference and attract the same crowds.
"It will be special playing in the Indian Open this year. My confidence is high (after the Wyndham Championship) and what better way to end the year than by winning my national Open for the second time," said Atwal.
For Lahiri, coming off his BILT Open success, it was more of a homecoming. "I have played at the DGC since I was 12. It's a course which rewards accuracy. It's easy to lose your cool on a course like this. I finished third last time and I am happy to be back at the DGC," Lahiri said at the unveiling.
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