Aware of shortcomings, Jeev keeps focus on the positives
NEW DELHI: The love of golf exceeded everything else, so that stopped him from walking away, but the past three years there were instances when Jeev Milkha Singh broke down. “What am I doing,” was the common refrain. After that win at the Scottish Open in 2012, it was a plunge till he hit “rock bottom”.
Brought about by a spate of injuries, it wasn’t the physical discomfort that hurt. “The painkillers take care of that.” It was the mental setback. “When you are unable to pull off golfing shots you normally do, that’s when it hits you the hardest,” he said.
If ever told mildly that he was getting on in years, Jeev had a ready answer in “age is just a number; you gain with experience”. Belief in the self kept him dreaming (of a comeback), and that happened with his first top-10 in three years in Thailand last week.
Overcome by doubt, he would come out of it, but rather than sweep those instances under the carpet, he stopped to take note. The realisation that the sport “will land more blows than success” was there, so it was a matter of seeing off those moments. There was tomorrow, and as they say in golf parlance, it brought with it a brand new opportunity.
The ability to stand up to adversity got instilled during his college days in the US. The details of that life- learning skills class may have blurred with time, but what came to stay was the belief that he was meant to excel. Even during the lean times, he would write every night, “I was born to win,” in the diary he’s come to maintain. Not once, but 10 times, just to drive home the point.
He’s gone on to win several times but the trials have been far more. Such is the sport, he emphasises again. When uncertain, he’s found refuge in the space he’s built at home. One such occasion was before the Scottish Open, and sitting quietly amidst the trophies helped wash away the negativity.
Three missed cuts leading to last week would have accorded another opportunity to “focus on the positives”. The first day of the Thailand Classic was ordinary, and set him thinking. “I realised the shortcoming lay in my short game and putting. The next day I discovered something during practice which worked,” he said, referring to going low for the remaining days.
If the going’s been good, Jeev hopes it would get better at the Hero Indian Open this week. After all, it’s a “brand new person and the golfing head seems to be making the right calls”.