GOLCONDA MASTERS Harendra gears up for defence of title

He may not have had the best of starts to 2016, or even the best of finishes to 2015, but Chandigarh golfer Harendra Gupta is determined to make his mark in Hyderabad, where he will defend his title at the Golconda Masters Golf Championship.

The eight-time PGTI winner has had a turbulent time since October last year after sustaining a neck injury. He returned to action this year but missed the cut at both the PGTI tournaments played so far.

But all that could change this week at the Hyderabad Golf Club. “I’m happy to be back at the HGC,” Harendra said. “I had a fantastic time here last year and I’m eager to repeat that performance. I’ve had a tough time due to my neck injury since the end of last year. I’ve had to miss some events and endured pain while playing in others. But now my recovery is almost complete and I’m raring to step onto the course.”

Giving the champ a run for his money will be teenager and Asian Tour rookie Shubhankar Sharma of Gurgaon, who won last week’s PGTI event in Bengaluru for his second career title.

Shubhankar said, “I was pretty happy with what I achieved last week. All aspects of my game are quite sharp at the moment. Another good week in Hyderabad would really lift my confidence ahead of next month’s Indian Open.”

He went on to add, “I really enjoyed playing at the HGC last year. There have been some changes in the course, it seems more challenging.”