Indian Open: Home contingent disappoints on opening day

THE HOME challenge started disappointingly on a low-scoring day with favourable playing conditions, as only three Indians were among the top 20 after the opening round of the 2024 Hero Indian Open at the DLF Golf and Country Club on Thursday.

Placed first and second respectively on last year’s Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) Order of Merit, Om Prakash Chouhan and Aman Raj, alongside Karandeep Kochhar, were the highestplaced Indians – tied 14th at 4-under-par.

Veer Ahlawat was tied 22nd after shooting three under par, and India No.1 Shubhankar Sharma, who had been in form and seen as the biggest Indian hope, recovered from a poor start and ill health to finish two under par. Gaganjeet Bhullar was tied 34th alongside Shubhankar.

Last year’s third-place finisher, Dutchman Joost Luiten, made nine birdies to shoot an impressive 65 for a seven-under-par score, sharing the lead with Italy's Matteo Manassero and Keita Nakajima of Japan.

With conditions benign – despite high heat and humidity and wind not coming into play till later in the day – it ended up being a low-scoring day. To put it in perspective, German Marcel Siem's winning score after four rounds last year was 14-under-par.

However, the home contingent did not really capitalise on the first day. Only six Indians ended the round in the top 30, and 10 were in the top 50. Last year, there were three in the top 10 alone after the opening round.

Despite this being the home course for many in the Indian contingent, there have been no home winners in the last three editions, and it was not a particularly promising start to the 2024 campaign.

PGTI toppers leading way

As the topper of the PGTI Order of Merit, 37-year-old Chouhan was handed a card to compete on the DP World Tour (formerly the European Tour) this year, and has played six tournaments this year. Having never made the cut at the Indian Open at the DLF Golf and Country Club, he said the experience of playing on a top Tour against a challenging field has helped him feel comfortable.

“The European Tour experience has helped a lot. Playing against a quality field, and on tougher courses, has helped coming into this event. I feel less pressure here,” Chouhan, the son of a greenkeeper on an army course in Madhya Pradesh, said.

With a flawless front nine – three birdies and six pars – Chouhan was the topperforming Indian before making two bogeys on the back nine.

Chouhan went for an audacious birdie on the final hole but dragged the attempt wide, misjudging the slope and seeing the ball go downhill off the green, resulting in a bogey that saw him fall out of the top 10. But he remained unbothered by the lastminute hiccup.

Anirban Lahiri, fighting for an Olympics spot after his move to the Saudi-backed LIV Golf tour saw him plummet in the rankings, described his five-over-par round as a “horror.” Lahiri, who needs a strong showing here if he hopes to remain in the reckoning for the Paris Olympics next year, is placed tied-127th.

In benign conditions, Dutchman Joost Luiten, Italy's Matteo Manassero and Japan's Keita Nakajima lead at 7-under par.