Gurgaon: Even as he kept his winning streak in India intact, Gaganjeet Bhullar, the talented Indian golfer, made some mental notes in his preparation for the upcoming Hero Honda Indian Open at the DLF Golf and Country Club Sunday. Anirban Lahiri, who finished second to Bhullar at the DLF Masters with a final round of 66, confessed to doing the same.
The 21-year-old Bhullar, who won the DLF Masters Sunday, said: “Playing here this week was great preparation for the Hero Honda Indian Open early next month. Since the Indian Open is at the DLF, I went through this week working out how I will play during that week.”
Bhullar admitted that the course is sure to undergo some more work before the Indian Open and added: “The rains had the course soft. But with the sun coming over in the next couple of weeks the course will be in perfect shape for the Indian Open. I am looking forward to it.”
Asked how much the National Open meant to him, he said: “It is always a great honour to win the National Open. I am in good form both in terms of physical shape and the game itself, so I hope I can make a strong bid for it.”
Another young golfer making notes on the DLF Golf Course this week at the event was Anirban Lahiri, a teammate of Bhullar at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, where the duo was part of the squad that took a silver medal in team championships.
“This week was the ideal opportunity to work out a strategy, or at least file away a few things for the Indian Open,” said Lahiri. “I had a good round Sunday and that gave me a lot of positives.”
Lahiri, who has six top-10 in seven starts this season and had a couple of other seconds last season, is still looking for his maiden win. “It will come (his first win). I have been closing on to it,” he said with a smile. “I am sure it is not too far off.”
Talking of the DLF course, he said: “It was affected by recent rains, but should be in best of conditions, when the Hero Honda Indian Open comes around.”
Bhullar and Lahiri are widely acknowledged as the stars of the future in Indian golf.
Jyoti Randhawa, one of the three superstars of Indian golf, said: “Bhullar is the star in making. He is on a hot streak and is playing great golf. At his age (21 years), we were not as mature. He has a great future.”
IANS
First Published: Monday, September 21, 2009, 18:58