Practicing in Barcelona for the European Tour's final qualifying, which starts from Friday, my heart is in India. The Indian Open is happening on my home turf and the final day of the Hex City Albatross International Championship is unfolding at the Classic Golf Resort.
It's exciting to hear about the two big shows and I am missing all the action. I am also waiting to watch the live webcast of the final day of the Albatross Championship on www.albatross.co.in.
Players from countries like the United Arab Emirates, Canada, USA, Indonesia, South Africa and Thailand are present and it is a great challenge for our rising stars. Looking at the talent of junior golfers like Prakhar Asawa, who played five-under in the under-12 group, and Simran Saini, who scored a hole-in-one, I see they are trying their best to prove themselves.
One can always find great team spirit, especially among Category 'A' golfers. When a player hits a bad shot, another calms him down with encouragement. The last two days have also seen a lot of talent from international players like Dylan Raubenheimer, Danthai Boolma and Tanapal Dusadeepruetthiphal.
Watching these guys, I am reminded of the time I started at the age of four in Kapurthala. Perhaps, that was the only time I played without pressure. I shot a 70 on the front nine and people around me realised that it was probably the best for anyone at that age. I took up golf as my career and was without any sponsors. Now that upcoming golfers have the support of organisers like AJT and other sponsors, they should take advantage of it and focus on their game without thinking about the future.
{{/usCountry}}Watching these guys, I am reminded of the time I started at the age of four in Kapurthala. Perhaps, that was the only time I played without pressure. I shot a 70 on the front nine and people around me realised that it was probably the best for anyone at that age. I took up golf as my career and was without any sponsors. Now that upcoming golfers have the support of organisers like AJT and other sponsors, they should take advantage of it and focus on their game without thinking about the future.
{{/usCountry}}I wish the junior golfers the best of luck and look forward to following their success on Albatross.