Gurugram (Haryana) [India], January 28 : Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma is under no illusion over the stern test coming from old friends and familiar faces as a stellar field lineup for a crack at the US$2 million International Series India in Gurugram this week.
The headlines may be about LIV Golf superstars such as reigning US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau and Joaquin Niemann, the 2024 International Series rankings winner, but Sharma is wary of the threat posed by his fellow Indian golfers from January 30 to February 2 at the DLF Golf and Country Club.
He puts that strong domestic challenge down to the experience the players have been gaining week in and week out on The International Series and Asian Tour in recent years.
Anirban Lahiri, who plays with DeChambeau and Paul Casey for Crushers GC after coming up through the ranks in Asia, is one of the local heroes, while 11-time Asian Tour winner Gaganjeet Bhullar will also draw support from the galleries, along with veterans Jeev Milkha Singh, S.S.P. Chawrasia and Shiv Kapur.
Ajeetesh Sandhu, Rashid Khan and Rahil Gangjee are all proven winners on the Asian Tour, with five wins between them.
Others are knocking at the door, Yuvraj Sandhu, 27, managed a T4 at the Mercuries Taiwan masters in October, and 25-year-old Karandeep Khochhar was runner-up at the BNI Indonesian Masters and T5 at the Volvo China Open, both high-profile events on The International Series in 2023.
Sharma, a two-time winner on the Asian Tour, said, "I can say this very proudly, but Indian golf has done so well in the last 10, 11 years since I have been a professional," as per a press release from The International Series.
"A lot of the Indian players have applied their craft on the Asian Tour, and this is where I started as well - I won the Asian Tour Order of Merit in 2018 and that's where things really started for me, that was my first big trophy and the Asian Tour has always been my home," added the 28-year-old who has also won twice on the European Tour.
"I have always said that. It's where I learned to compete with the best and where I got a proper introduction into international golf and it is very heartening to see what the Asian Tour has got with The International Series," added the 28-year-old.
"I couldn't be happier for the Asian players and it's great to see where the game is going and not only for India but for all the other countries that are doing so well. The fields are getting so much better, there's more depth and the competition is so much more," he said.
"I think The International Series events just shows that, I played in Riyadh at the end of last season (the season-ending Saudi International) and I saw what the competition level was, it was low scoring but for me it's amazing," he added.
"For me it's a homecoming - not only playing in India but playing on the Asian Tour. It's much more relaxed and I know everyone so it's a great atmosphere", he signs off.
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