Feature by Anand Datla
November 25 2014: Long after hanging up his boots as a cricketer, Kapil Dev is showing no signs of slowing down. The ace all rounder was in HongKong last week getting a measure of the Discovery Bay Golf Club. The world cup winning former Indian captain was wielding his clubs with passion, as he worked his way inside the top 20 at the Asia-Pacific Senior Amateur Championship. Kapil finished 13th on the list finishing with an overall score of 12-over 225.
The tournament itself finished in a thrilling play off that lasted six holes between a relentless Shingo Matsumoto and a determined Andrew McKechnie before the Japanese golfer took the title.
Kapil, a passionate golfer ever since his retirement from cricket, produced two good performances to start the tournament. But after posting 73 and 72 on the par 71 course during the first two rounds, the 55 year old suffered a terrible let down on the last day.
The all-rounder who picked 434 wickets and scored 5,248 runs during his 131 test career stumbled badly in the third round to settle for an 80. The 9-over score decimated any chances of Kapil finishing higher up the list.
The lowest score of the event was posted Gordon Claney. The Aussie made a two under 69 in the first round, but a pair of 75s to follow that effort meant that he missed the playoff by just one stroke.
Claney was the only man to post a below par score in this year’s edition of the event. There were just six other scores of even par through the three round competition.
Kapil met the media during the event and took the opportunity to discuss his love for golf and hopes for Indian cricket. “I don’t like to sit around doing nothing and as soon as I stopped playing cricket I took up golf. My handicap is three and I played two-over today,” said Kapil immediately after a satisfying first round. “Not bad,” he concluded.
The 2015 event has been pushed into October, scheduled to be played between 14th and 16th October in China.
