More to come from Indian talent: Singh

Jeev Milkha Singh believes that there is a lot more to come from Indian professional golfers following the recent success of his fellow countrymen on the international stage.

In addition to SSP Chowrasia’s victory at the Indian Masters and Singh’s runner-up finish at the Indonesian Open, five other Indian golfers have managed top-10 places at European and Asian Tour events in the past three weeks, hinting at the broad pool of talent that currently exists on the subcontinent’s golf scene.

Singh, who has two victories on the European Tour to his name, feels that the increase of major golf events in the country has much to do with the emergence of the Indian pros.

“There’s a lot of depth in Indian golf and also a lot of talent. I think that players are maturing up really well and are more comfortable playing with bigger players,” said the 2006 Volvo Masters winner.

“There are more tournaments coming to India and when they (Indian players) play with the bigger players they learn. They learn how to conduct themselves and they learn how to manage themselves. They start believing that if they can do it, why not us?

“I believe that there will be a lot more players coming through, especially the young guns out of India.”

Singh feels that victory for an Indian player at this week’s Johnnie Walker Classic at the Arnold Palmer-designed DLF Golf and Country Club near Delhi could add further momentum to the development of golf in the country.

“It would be the icing on the cake,” he said. “I think that would be great for Indian golf. Indian golf has come a long way - it’s the fastest growing sport in our country today.

“If an Indian wins (this week), I think we’ll have more tournaments in India and more sponsors will come through and also a lot of confidence will go down the ladder to other players who play on the Indian Tour.”

Buoyed by his performance in Jakarta a fortnight ago, the 36-year-old Chandigarh native is looking forward to the challenge of playing in the Johnnie Walker Classic, which has never previously visited India in its 18-year history.

“I’m pretty excited about playing here this week. The Johnnie Walker Classic has always been one of the best events in Asia and this is a special event because it is being held in India for the first time.

“The golf course is playing well – it is in good condition – but the playing conditions are going to be tough with the wind, the greens are firm, there’s a lot of slope on the greens and there’s a lot of depth in the field, so it’s going to be an interesting week.

“I’m playing well and I’m pretty excited about playing here. I’ve played here many times, and it think it all comes down to putting at the end of the day, but there’s a lot of depth in the field, so we’ll see how it goes.”