Dec 10, 2019: International Team captain Stuart Appbleby has predicted a bright future for Indian junior golfer Kartik Sharma following the conclusion of the Junior Presidents Cup which the United States Team won 13-11 on Monday.
Appleby said the 19-year-old Sharma, who claimed a convincing 3 and 1 Singles victory over American junior Stephen Campbell Jr, reminded him of eight-time PGA TOUR winner and five-time Presidents Cup member, Mike Weir. Both Sharma and Weir are left-handers.
“Kartik has a Mike Weir all over him. I saw Mike and told him there’s a guy out here who’s you and he has your mannerism, he’s left-handed and even the way he holds his club out and line-up a shot. There’s a lot of talent there,” said Appleby.
Sharma, 19, was over the moon despite being on the losing International Team at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club. After losing both his Four-Ball and Foursomes matches on Sunday with partner Andi Xu of China, the young Indian ensured he left Australia with a point in hand following a convincing 3 and 1 victory over American Stephen Campbell Jr, a 2019 Rolex Junior All-American.
Rated as one of India’s brightest prospects, Sharma said: “It’s awesome to be playing in a team event. I’ve learnt a lot from it and hopefully it’ll help me become a better player. There’s no short cut. You just have to work your backside off. That’s what I’ve done and all the 24 players have done to be here. There’s nothing called talent, I don’t believe in that.”
Appleby, a five-time Presidents Cup member and nine-time PGA TOUR champion, believes his 12 young charges could do well in the game despite suffering a second consecutive defeat to the U.S. Team, which was captained by Justin Leonard.
“These next five years will be the next level … where do they go from here. They’re good enough here, they’re much better than I was when I was their age,” said Appleby.
Throughout his stint as captain, Appleby said he has shared his experiences with the juniors about professional golf. “Golf is lonely … media only talks about the one percent of that one percent of what you do and the rest of the time, you’re doing the 99.999 percent when no one is looking and that’s the stuff that matters …. when you’re out on the range at 8am all by yourself or in the rain practising or out late in the evening figuring out your putting. You can grow from there,” said Appleby.
The Junior Presidents Cup served as a prelude to the Presidents Cup which begins at Royal Melbourne on Thursday. Ernie Els is leading the International Team which is seeking to beat the United States Team only for the second time in the tournament’s history. Tiger Woods in the playing captain for the U.S. Team.
