Friday, Apr 19, 2024 | Last Update : 12:35 PM IST
Subhankar, Lahiri to spearhead Indian challenge
The four-day tournament beginning on March 28 will offer a prize purse of $1.75 million.
New Delhi: All eyes will be on Asian Tour No.1 Subhankar Sharma and former champion Anirban Lahiri when the 55th edition of the Indian Open tees off at the DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurugram later this month.
The four-day tournament beginning on March 28 will offer a prize purse of $1.75 million.
Two-time champion S.S.P. Chawrasia, Shiv Kapur, Rahil Gangjee and youngsters like Ajeetesh Sandhu, Viraj Madappa, Khalin Joshi and S. Chikkarangappa will be the other local players to watch out for.
“Players hold the Indian Open in high esteem. Every golfer dreams of winning this event at least once in his career. But it would be tough for everyone as the field keeps getting stronger every year," Sandhu said at the launch of the event here on Thursday.
The tournament, co-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tour, also boasts of strong international field featuring 2018 Scottish Open champion Brandon Stone, last year's runner-up Andrew Johnston and Bernd Wiesberger, who has four European Tour wins to his credit.
Even before its launch, the tournament ran into controversy and a cloud of uncertainty shrouded its conduct this year after the Sports Ministry derecognised the Indian Golf Union, the official hosting rights holder of the event, for failing to adhere to the National Sports Code.
But eventually the sports ministry handed a temporary relief to the IGU at the eleventh hour by granting it interim recognition for four months, paving the way for the tournament's conduct this year.
