Shubhankar Sharma refuses to blink under pressure

Shubhankar Sharma was asked questions on Saturday at the Chapultepec Golf Club. The young man used them to answer with the weight of his character and the strength of his poise.

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Shubhankar Sharma has shown great character in the third round of the WGC Mexico

March 04, 2018: At the start of the third round on Saturday, Shubhankar Sharma found himself on the practice range at the same time as Phil Mickelson. As he approached the 47-year-old veteran, Shubhankar heard Lefty say, “not now, after the round,” assuming that the young man was from the media. Bottle that moment, for a book, maybe. Shubhankar will stride out on Sunday with the five-time major winner as he looks to underline his emergence with an emphatic victory in the WGC Mexico.

Just three months ago, Shubhankar was ranked 521 in the world. At the end of this week, he could find himself inside the top 30 international golfers. It is a heady ride, but it appears Shubhankar is unfazed.

Shubhanker made a fine start in the third round – three birdies in the first six holes – to consolidate his grip at the top of the order. But even as Rafa Cabrera Bello and the rest of the chasing pack including Mickelson, defending champion Dustin Johnson and a fiery Justin Thomas were hot on his heels, Shubhankar stuttered for the first time this week.

He made up for a bogey at the 8th with a great birdie at the 11th but bogeys at 13 & 16 seemed to suggest that Shubhankar may have been yielding ground under the intense spotlight of a WGC tournament.

But this is a young man, with a strong will. He gathered himself very quickly, coming through a stern test with his poise intact. Shubhankar floated to the edge of the green at the par-3 17th hole. The risk of another three-putt loomed for the young man. But the unflinching Indian shot a remarkable 36-foot putt, right to the edge of the cup.

Shubhankar was in the bunker on the 18th, after catching the tree with his second shot. The 75th ranked golfer caught too much sand with his bunker shot, leaving himself a tricky 14 footer for par. In making that clutch putt, Shubhankar sent out a message to the pack. He is not a young man that is willing to fade away.

“It was very important. Obviously, Rafa had a birdie putt and could have been a two-shot swing, but I think I got a bit unlucky on the second shot,” explained Shubhankar. “Right before my shot, we checked the wind and it was still. As soon as I hit it, the ball just hit a gust of wind which came from the front and the ball stayed in the bunker, and 10 seconds after that it was still again. So that’s — it’s not easy to get the yardages here sometimes.”

I’ve done a good job of it till now, but again everyone makes mistakes and I just did that there, and even on 16, made a few mistakes. But yeah, making par was very, very important. It was a very tough putt, but yeah, I just did my routine and just looked at the line and hit a great putt.”

With a two-stroke cushion, Shubhankar will come out in the final group with Mickelson and Tyrrell Hatton. Whatever, Lefty wants decided needs done during the round, not after.

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