Dubai: A Major win is all India needs for the game to explode on the subcontinent and it’s not that far away from happening, according to the country’s latest star Shubhankar Sharma.
Sharma, 21, from Chandigarh, won his first event in the co-sanctioned Joburg Open in South Africa last month to earn his card on the European Tour this season, where he’s currently sixth in the Race to Dubai after the first six events.
Not only was it the 14th European Tour win by an Indian male after Jeev Milkha Singh (four), Shiv Chawrasia (four), Arjun Atwal (three) and Anirban Lahiri (two), but it also earns him his first Major invite, for this year’s Open in July.
To date, Indian men have made 45 Major appearances, with Lahiri finishing the highest, tied for fifth at the PGA Championship in 2015.
“A Major win would do wonders for our country,” said Sharma, speaking on the sidelines of this weekend’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic. “If we had a Major champion it would help the government make more decisions for the betterment of golf.
“Cricket is different,” he said of India’s most popular sport. “You don’t need a course and kids play in a gully with three wickets, a ball and a bat, but golf needs a lot more.
“We have more and more players coming up but too few public ranges and obviously we need more to make the sport more accessible to normal guys.
“My win has motivated a lot of kids at home where I stay and I think it’s made a difference but if we get more and more stars in India and kids see them win on the big stage; we’re a country of over one billion, so we could send new guys on tour.
“There are many, many more talents and don’t be surprised to see more play on the Asia Tour and win a co-sanctioned event to make Europe, like I did. You will see them all making it onto the tour, it’s only a matter of time.”
Sharma’s father Mohan Lal, 51, said that an Indian Major win could happen at any moment.
“It will happen, and if a Major happens golf will explode in India,” he said “It can happen at any time. I think we’ll see a Major champion very soon.
“There’s a belief system among the youngsters, they are not scared and the children have learnt that from the parents. They have said go ahead and fight, we are behind you, and that’s very important.
“A lot of parents have taken an interest and realise there’s more beyond cricket and there are entire ecosystems working towards golf in every big Indian city now. It all points to something very good.
“Over the past five years Indian golf has taken a step up but in the next five years it will take two steps, and we’ll definitely have a Major winner within two to three years. This present company isn’t scared, bothered or overawed, they know their limitations and want to perform.”
Sharma carded a 69 on the first day of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic on Thursday and sits three under for the tournament.
