Lahiri eyes good feed to shake off jet lag
ANIRBAN Lahiri says a wellknown Indian restaurant in Sydney will help him overcome jet lag as he looks to get his debut Australian Open back on track.
The 31-year-old from India signed for a one-over 73 on day one at The Lakes to sit six shots off leader Byeong Hun An (67).
Lahiri was one of several Open contestants who made the 14,000km dash from last week’s US PGA Tour event in Mexico to Sydney — arriving on Wednesday.
Lahiri made the turn in one under par, but seemed to hit the wall when carding two back-nine bogeys and a threeputt double-bogey on his last hole. “It was hard to stay awake last night but I feel fine,” he said.
Lahiri, whose globetrotting path to the US Tour included playing on the European and Asian circuits, said Indian cuisine always helped him settle in to a city during golf tournaments.
The world No.131 has set his sights on Surjit’s restaurant in Sydney’s inner-west, a popular haunt for the Indian Test cricket side when playing matches at the SCG.
MARCUS FRASER proposed scrapping prizemoney, but he won’t be giving the $225,000 cheque back if he wins the Australian Open.
“Not a chance,” he said after opening with a three-underpar 69 yesterday to be just two strokes off the first-round lead.
Fraser made the radical suggestion on Tuesday, after officials were unable to secure any of the top 25 players for this year’s Open in Sydney.
With former world No.1s Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose, Dustin Johnson, Adam Scott and Jason Day all snubbing the event, Fraser figured the best way to bring them back was to sell the Open with its history and prestige instead.
“We’re all here playing for prize money, but I would still be here next year if we weren’t,” he said on Thursday.
“It was a bit of a passing comment, I suppose, but we need to remember who’s playing this week, not who’s not playing, I think, and remember the championship’s bigger than any one player.”