Young Nayanika Sanga shows great promise

Special Feature by Tariq Engineer

March 12, 2016: Having finished second the last two years, Nayanika Sanga was determined to win the Kazi Cup at the Willingdon Sports Club this time around. The Ladies Open event was held last month and attracted 35 players, mostly from Maharashtra but a few from as far away as Chandigarh and Hyderabad.

The third time did indeed prove to be the charm as Nayanika shot Nayanika shot a four-over 69 in the qualifying round and then romped through the first two match-play rounds (the quarters and semis) before winning on the 26th hole in the 36-hole final.
But that’s not what makes Nayanika’s victory stand out, her age does. She is only 11 years old, making her the youngest ever winner of the Kazi Cup since it began in the 1950s (and yes, that means she finished second as a nine-year old).

Nayanika took up the game by fortuitous accident when she was just five years old. Her family was living in Wellington at the time and were attending a lunch at the golf course. Nayanika gazed out at the lush green fairways and told her dad she wanted to give golf a shot.

“I saw the greenery and that attracted me,” she told Golfing Indian over the phone. “I didn’t know anything [about the game].
Neither did her parents, who are not golfers and who thought the game would be a passing fancy for their daughter. “We thought it was a slightly boring game and she would not like it, her father, Captain Chandrapal Sanga, said. “We’ve seen a lot of kids taking it up and then leaving it.”

But Nayanika would be different. She enjoyed being outdoors and had taken a particular shine to putting. “I really liked putting. Getting the ball in the hole was interesting to me,” she said.

Her dad bought her a junior set – one with six clubs – and for the first three years, Nayanika played golf more as a hobby than a serious sport.

Three years later the family moved to Delhi and Nayanika was spotted by Anitya Chand, the head golf professional at the DLF Golf Course. “He told me ‘she has a beautiful natural swing and I would to take her under my wing,’” Captain Sanga said.

Nayanika’s family was quick to embrace this offer and encouraged their daughter to pursue the game more seriously. Over the last two years, her handicap has dropped from 18 to 6 and she has been playing 10 to 12 tournaments a year on the Indian Golf Union’s Junior circuit. In 2015, she finished third in the IGU All-India Under-13 category and second in the Western India junior in the same category, ending the year fourth on the IGU Merit List.

“We are totally committed to her golf over the last two years after seeing she has the potential,” Captain Sanga said. “It is now a 24 hour kind of job for us. If I don’t get off and she has to go for a tournament, either my wife goes or my in-laws go. In Delhi, my parents are there, so they take the responsibility.

“It has becoming a family affair.”

Nayanika and her family now live in Mumbai – her father is in the Navy – and she plays her golf at the U.S Club. Every three months, she goes back to Delhi for a session with Chand to make sure everything is on track.

“He [Chand] tells me I should focus on my fitness and a good diet. And while playing the tournament, not get nervous. To play my own game,” Nayanika said. “I am trying to hit the ball longer, to gain distance. And trying to improve my short game. “

Her current routine involves practicing or playing golf three or four times a week. Other days he either goes swimming or running or plays basketball, another sport she particularly enjoys

Whenever she has spare time, she can be found watching golf on television or on YouTube (she was watching the HSBC Ladies Open when I called her, she told me).

Nayanika said half her friends did not know what golf was when she started but through her they have learned about the game. “Then when they saw golf on the TV, they realised wow, you play golf. You are going to be famous,” she said.

As with all school-going children, balancing golf and studies is the big challenge. Nayanika currently attends the Navy Children’s School in Colaba, which has been very accommodating of her schedule. “There are the ones who keep pushing her and saying don’t worry, go for the tournament,” Captain Sanga said. “They even adjust exams.”

“It is difficult but I am able to balance both, Nayanika said. “Whenever I get time off, say a weekend, I sit down and only study. When I take a break, I go to the golf course, chip and putt and come back.”

Golf hasn’t just taken away time from her schoolwork though; it has given back too. “Her concentration on studies has improved since she started golf,” Captain Sanga said.

Nayanika names two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson as her favourite golfer “because he hits really long and his putting and chipping is also very good”. Among the women, current World No. 1 Lydia Ko (who is only 18 years old) and American Paula Creamer are the two she follows the most, and she has set her sights set on following in their footsteps.

“My dream is to play on the LPGA Tour, play in the Olympics and travel around the world,” she said.