Delhi Golf Club’s Lodhi course gets a new look

Time and an ever-growing footfall at one of the country’s busiest golf courses took a toll and the national Open was shifted out by the European Tour on account of the poor-quality greens at the 2016 edition.

Since its inception in 1964, the Indian Open has been synonymous with the Delhi Golf Club. If five-time Open Championship winner, the late Peter Thomson, won the inaugural edition here, Ali Sher added to the Lodhi Course’s prestige by becoming the first Indian professional to triumph in 1991.

A view of the prestigious Delhi Golf Club, which was eastablised in 1930. (Delhi Golf Club)

Time and an ever-growing footfall at one of the country’s busiest golf courses took a toll and the national Open was shifted out by the European Tour on account of the poor-quality greens at the 2016 edition. Last year’s Panasonic Open was the trigger for a major overhaul after the Asian Tour event was played on patchy browns.

Nine-time Major winner and World Golf Hall of Fame entrant Gary Player’s company was roped in for the redesign, which has been funded completely by corporate sponsors. After non-stop work for nine months, which saw 230,000 cubic feet of sand being moved for the new greens, the new Lodhi Course will be formally opened on Friday.

The initial plan was to only do the greens but along the way all the par-3 holes have been redone with the fairway bunkers and irrigation system. While care has been taken to maintain the heritage—the premium will still be on the tee shot with the endeavour to stay clear of the dense vegetation on either side, a lot more strategy will come into play with the deceptive slopes on and around the greens a test of ability.