Indian golf fans are always looking for the next big star to emerge from India and with the absence of international pro golf for the past two years, the DGC Open will be the fans first look at some of the hottest new talent to emerge in India. Here are four of our top picks:
Veer Ahlawat
Veer Ahlawat has had a tremendous run on the Asian Tour this season
When the Asian Tour resumed late in 2021 with two events in Thailand, one of the players who stood out was Delhi’s Veer Ahlawat. The 25-year-old finished in the top-10 at the Blue Canyon Championship in Phuket, his best finish on the Asian Tour since 2019.
The 6 ft 2 inch tall Ahlawat finished 5th on the PGTI money list 2021 and is known for consistency.
Kshitij Kaul
Kshitij Naveed Kaul won the Mujib Borsho Chattogram Open in Bangladesh
21-year-old 6 foot 3 inch tall Kshitij Kaul of Delhi has already claimed three titles on the PGTI, including one in Bangladesh in March 2022 following another title in November 2021. His current form makes him one of the favourites for the DGC Open. At the 2018 Asian Tour event at DGC, he finished an impressive 6th.
Kaul enjoyed an impressive amateur career, which included a victory in the Asia Pacific Junior Championship in 2013 and a trio of appearances in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship (AAC).
In his first full year on the PGTI in 2019, Kaul finished 6th on the money list. He won the Pune Open and posted seven other top-10 finishes, including two seconds.
Karandeep Kochhar
Karandeep Kochhar finished runner-up on the PGTI’s OOM in 2021
22 year old Karandeep Kochhar of Chandigarh is another young gun with an impressive resume of four PGTI victories including the Gujarat Open in February.
Kochhar was tied for second going into the last round at the International Series Thailand before dropping unexpectedly to 16th. The six-foot-tall Kochhar has played well at DGC before, having finished tied for second at the 2017 Asian Tour event. A good performance by him this week wouldn’t be a surprise.
Yuvraj Sandhu
Last week’s winner in Kolkata, Yuvraj Singh Sandhu will be looking to continue his good run at DGC too
Another Chandigarh golfer, 25-year-old Yuvraj Sandhu, had a terrific season in 2021 and has started 2022 strongly by winning the Players Championship at Tollygunge Club, Kolkata last week with a record-breaking score of 21 under par.
Sandhu, who is currently second on the PGTI Order of Merit, has good local knowledge of the DGC course, which should give him an advantage this week.
Credits:-
Photo – Asian Tour