Anirban Lahiri leads a strong field

Edited by Anand Datla

February 01, 2015:  A strong cast from the Asian Tour and European Tour have confirmed their participation for the 2015 Hero Indian Open from February 19 to 22.  With entries from 16 players from inside the top-100 on the European Tour’s 2014 Race to Dubai rankings, and 27 from the top-30 on the Asian Tour’s 2014 Order of Merit, the field is set to become one of the strongest ever assembled in India.

The field also comprises five players in world’s top-100 rankings including India’s Anirban Lahiri.  The famed ‘Big Three’ of Indian golf – Jeev Milkha Singh, Arjun Atwal and Jyoti Randhawa, who between them have won more than 30 titles across the globe will also feature at the Delhi Golf Club.

Besides them, the current crop of stars led by Lahiri, Gaganjeet Bhullar, Shiv Kapur, S.S.P. Chawrasia and the latest super star 23-year-old Rashid Khan will also be in action later this month.  Indian golf had a great year in 2014, as Indians won six titles on the Asian Tour – the most by any country during the season. The 27-year-old Lahiri, now the highest ranked Indian in the world rankings, and Khan won two titles each in 2014, while Chawrasia and Atwal won one title respectively.

Another title came on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) from the promising youngster S Chikkarangappa, who is mentored by former India cricket captain and legend Rahul Dravid.  Talking of current form, the entries from 31 countries across the region and the world, also sees 12 winners, who between them won 15 events on the Asian Tour’s 2014 schedule.

From the European contingent, as many as five players accounted for seven titles on the 2014 European Tour schedule, with Alexander Levy and the seasoned Miguel Angel Jimenez winning twice each. Dane Thorbjorn Olesen and Swede Mikael Lundberg are the other 2014 winners to send their entries for what will be the 51st edition of the historic Indian Open.

The star cast includes Asia’s most successful winner of all time, Thaworn Wiratchant, who has 18 titles on the Asian Tour, and Jimenez of Spain, who has 21 European Tour titles, and figures 10th on the all-time list of most successful players on European Tour.  The field has also all the Hero Indian Open champions from 2004 onwards and five players who have won the Asian Tour Order of Merit seven times since 2002 including Singh and Thaworn, who have won the OOM twice each.