Nov 11, 2016: The air at the DLF Golf and Country Club has an edge to it this morning as the golfers tee off in a long procession. This marks the beginning of the 10th edition of the Women’s Indian Open, sponsored now by Hero Motors. Punpaka Phuntumabamrung was an early bird on the tee box and she took full advantage to run out in front with a birdie at the 11th and an eagle at the par-5 15th. Aditi Ashok is leading the Indian contingent, even through her first four holes, starting at the 10th tee.
The stage is set for an interesting week of golf. There are a few Americans, a bunch of Olympians and a lot of Europeans in the field. It is going to take some work before we get closer to knowing the winners this week.
There is plenty of Indian interest – 17 golfers in the fray, four amateurs and 13 professionals – and a top ten finish for any of them will be vocally celebrated by the throngs of fans at the DLF Golf and Country Club.
It is early days of winter yet and the Sun is shining warm and bright. The morning starters will have a bit of an edge, as the ball will hold better, so they will enjoy more control over distance and placement.
As the Sun bakes the course, it will start playing quicker through the day. The players going out this afternoon will need to be disciplined and use more variations to manage their landing spots on the fairway.
The greens at the club in Gurgoan have an undulating topography, leaving little margin for error, so we can expect the scorecards to glow in a variety of colors.
There are nineteen groups of three golfers each starting simultaneously at the first and tenth tees. The first two rounds will see them switch from one end to the other before the top 60 and ties progress through to the final round on Sunday.
