THIRD TIME LUCKY
Jyoti Randhawa rented out a two-bedroom cottage for a fortnight out in the countryside. There was Tina, his wife, and cousin Bunty Randhawa, now his regular bagman, for company. The weather was pleasant and the views picture perfect, the undulating Scottish meadows of the county of Ayrshire spread out before them. All calm and peaceful. Less than a half an hour drive away, the setting changed dramatically. The quietude around their temporary dwelling was replaced by the din of thousands stacked high on grandstands and lining the fairways of Royal Troon, acknowledging the performance before them. Randhawa is not likely to forget either experience in a hurry. "The walk down the 18th on the last day was a first time for me. I hit my approach shot to 20 feet and from there on till the time I reached my ball, I was overwhelmed by the huge mass of spectators who just kept on clapping. It almost became embarrassing. I lost count of the number of times I doffed my hat. I had goosebumps all over. In all that excitement, I missed my birdie putt!" said Randhawa, 32, of his final act at the 2004 Open Championship. That putt would have capped the most memorable week in Randhawa's already illustrious golfing career but despite the miss, history was made. The only Indian to play in three Opens, he also became the first to go the full distance in one of them. In fact, his three-over 287 total gave him a share of 27th place among a congregation of the world's best 156 golfers. "The crowd, the cheering, it's all very different. There's a lot of distraction and my past experience really helped me. I kept my focus on the job in hand," he said.
There was another milestone-two Indians in a major championship. Unfortunately, Arjun Atwal, playing in his first major, was not quite in the zone. Exempt by virtue of winning last year's Asian Order of Merit, Atwal left Troon disappointed. Two rounds of three-over par 74 saw him miss the halfway cut by three shots. Needing to get away to a fast start on the second day, Atwal, who had wife Sona and newborn son Krishen looking on, went out in four-over 40 in trying to be over aggressive on a devilish links layout. To his credit, he stayed with the task at hand and came back in one-under 34 but that was too little, too late. Atwal, the only Indian on the PGA Tour, has been consulting David Leadbetter and hopefully will be back on track soon. Randhawa, who got his ticket to the Open through the Asian Qualifiers, arrived in Troon a week early for some valuable acclimatization. Of course, he had also featured in the 2000 Open at St. Andrews and last year at Royal St. George's. "You get these kind of golf courses only at the British Open-hard undulating surfaces, narrow fairways and gusting winds. You need to know how to play all kinds of shots and if you miss the green, you better miss it on the right side or it can be a long haul," said the 2002 Asia Number One, currently in second place on the Asian Tour. There were practice rounds with Vijay Singh, Nick Price and Padraig Harrington. "I don't see any difference between them and me in ball striking. Where they do differ is that they play the same level of competition day in, day out," said the Indian. Randhawa admitted to nerves on the first tee, but kept himself in play with an opening 73. He was motoring along on Day Two with four birdies on the outward nine to turn in 33 but then he made a double bogey on the par-four 12th and the cut line loomed before him. There was more trouble. He pushed his five iron into thick rough on the 222-yard par-three 17th and was happy to get away with a bogey. Thinking he needed a par on the last to qualify, Randhawa went with a two iron off the tee for safety, but only succeeded in finding the first cut of rough. Feeling the pressure, he then came over the top on his nine iron approach and left himself in a horrible position behind a bunker with little green to play with. After chipping on, he missed his 16-footer for par. Tapping in for a bogey five he feared the worst. "It was only when I was in the scorers' hut that they said the cut was at three-over. I was so relieved. Never have I felt as tense as I did on those last two holes," said Randhawa, who made it right on the bubble. Being Bunty's birthday, there was added reason to celebrate that evening and a special dinner was laid out for the hardworking duo, courtesy Tina. Playing his carefree best, Randhawa fired a one-under 70 on Day Three. He dropped a stroke on the par-four second but picked up three shots in a six-hole stretch from the seventh to the 12th. The second bogey came on the par-three 14th. "Mentally and physically, I was more in control this time. I wasn't swinging at my best but I rose to the occasion. That really felt good. I was strong enough to handle the situation," he said. Reveling in the testing windy conditions, Randhawa carded a one-over 72 to round off a memorable week, which also saw his bank balance swell by a healthy $54,305. "The wind got up (on the final day) and it was definitely the most difficult conditions of the week. There was three clubs' difference on some holes compared to earlier in the tournament and to post a good score you needed to chip and putt well," said Randhawa. He did just that. "I feel the win in Japan last year (Suntory Open) took me to the next level and I can now play and compete with the best in the world." The star golfer will be doing just that once again shortly, having received invites to tee it up at the Reno Tahoe Open and the Buick Championship on the PGA Tour later this month.
First among Indians
Gaurav Ghei earned the distinction of becoming the first Indian to play a major when he teed it up at the 1997 British Open at Royal Troon after coming through the Qualifiers. With strong winds lashing the links layout, it was a tough debut. "The back nine was a nightmare. I couldn't get to the fairway on the 18th off the tee because of the wind," reminisces Ghei. Two rounds of 81 had Ghei missing the halfway cut that fell at five-over 147 that year but he did bring back some good memories. "The whole atmosphere was amazing. Things like going to the driving range and having breakfast with the world's top players. Phil Mickelson was sitting on the table next to me and so was Seve Ballesteros. You felt like you had hit the big league." On Jyoti Randhawa's performance at the same venue, Ghei said a Top 30 finish was very creditable. "He has been playing good golf and this result will give him more confidence. From just getting into majors, Indians are now finishing well. Next in line is a Top 10 finish and then we should be competing for the title," said Ghei. Jeev
Milkha Singh is the only other Indian to play all four days of a
major. His moment of glory came at the 2002 U.S. Open on a course
called the Black at Bethpage State Park, New York. |
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