Gurugram: Anirban Lahiri does not hide that he is ‘hungry’ and ‘desperate’ to win as he prepares to participate in the Indian Open this week. Returning to the event in 2015 that gave him his last worldwide victory, Lahiri was happy to be back ‘home’, but keen to prove to himself, more than anyone else, that he still had the ability to win.
“You know, I don’t know how many dozen seconds I’ve spent, that’s the heaviest on my shoulders. So I need to get it off my back. I want to win, I’m desperate to win,” Lahiri declared. Ki, who did not participate in this program last year.
“The driver is that I have to prove to myself that I can win again. It’s been a long time and no one feels that way more than me. So even though I’ve played 15, 16 years, I still I am as desperate to win this week as I was 10, 15 years ago. Because I have to prove it to myself. I don’t have to prove it to anyone else”, Lahiri said ahead of the 57th edition of the Indian Open. Which has record prize money. Of US$2.25 million.
The 2024 edition is one of the strongest, with almost a third of the players in the 144-strong field having won at DP World at some point. The winner will receive US$382,500, the runner-up will receive US$247,500, and the third-place finisher will receive US$141,750.
Lahiri’s last global win came at the same competition in 2015 and he finished second a year later. He has had countless second-place finishes since then, none more memorable than finishing runner-up at the Players Championship in 2022. Describing the ‘Hero Indian Open’ as his fifth major, Lahiri was no less in humor as he said, “It’s really amazing to be back, it’s a homecoming of sorts. It’s the National Open, I’m here with some of my friends. Just kidding, this is the fifth major and I’m finding it harder and harder to get into a major, so I’m glad I’m playing this week.”
Two-time Olympian Lahiri described ‘Olympics’ as an incomplete task. “I’ve got two shots at it,” he said, laughing. “Like every professional athlete, I have a whole list of excuses for why I didn’t play well.”
“It’s like a major championship, right? You want to start as many as possible in major competitions to compete and win. So it’s the same thing. The Olympics are few and far between. So I don’t know. That’s where my goals for the golf world will be four years from now. So I need to focus on, like I said, potentially the eight rounds or 12 rounds that I have between now and Paris that will get me there. Will take it. I just want to focus on the Olympics.”
Lahiri is currently ranked 401st in the world golf rankings and third among Indians. Ahead of him, Subhankar Sharma is ranked 188th in the world and Gaganjeet Bhullar is ranked 240th. India will get a maximum of two entries in the Olympics. The Olympic field is limited to 60 players for each men’s and women’s competition. The IGF will use the Official World Golf Rankings to create the Olympic Golf Rankings as a method of determining eligibility.
The top 15 world-ranked players will be eligible for the Olympics, with a limit of four players from a given country. Beyond the top 15, players will be eligible based on world ranking, with a maximum of two eligible players from each country that does not already have two or more players in the top 15.
Amidst his third Olympic debut and aiming to end a nine-year-long title drought, Lahiri said, “It’s really amazing to be back, it’s a homecoming of sorts. It’s fantastic at DLF, I just love my caddy. I was telling those who have come, I have come here for the first time from America and the first time I played here was in 1999 when I was 12 years old. So it is nostalgic. So it is fun to come back, it is good to be here. Okay. It’s so nice to see so many familiar faces. I’ve come back this year with less hair and more gray hair. Time has flown by, but it’s been good to me. It’s been a great trip and I’m so happy to be back. “And I’m looking forward to performing this week. It’s an important week for me to play well.”
And that will be the goal of the entire field of 144 players. Ryder Cup debut Colsaerts excited to return to India, thanks Munjal A little before Lahiri, former Ryder Cup star, Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium had said he was excited to be here in India once again. His only previous outing was in 2017, when he finished T-60.
“I’m really excited to be here. It always feels great to come, play and support a Hero event. Obviously, Pawan Munjal has been a great supporter of the game and the European Tour. So I think with respect, “And also for the guy and what he’s been able to do over the years, it’s the least we can do. And the golf course is challenging enough.”
“It feels good to come to a place I haven’t had a chance to come to very often. It’s definitely different and at my age, I find it quite gratifying to come to a place like that.” (ANI)
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2024-03-27 15:16:57