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'India can finish among top 10 at world golf final'

Tuesday, 23 September 2003, 00:00 Hrs

NEW DELHI: Ace golfer Gaurav Ghei, who along with Digvijay Singh propelled India into the World Championship final Sunday, is optimistic of India finishing among the top 10 in the title round in the U.S.

"To say that we would finish third or fourth would be unrealistic, but if we play well we can finish among the top 10," Ghei, who has just returned to his New Delhi home after the Nations Cup in Singapore, told IANS.

The event will be held at Kiawah Island, South Carolina, from November 13 to 16.

India, with a score of six under 282, finished joint second with China at the Nations Cup, held in Singapore last week, to qualify for the final.

"Finishing among the top 10 would be creditable as the world's top players would be competing there," he added.

Ghei said as top players like Tiger Woods of the U.S. and Ernie Els of South Africa would be there, taking part in the final would itself be an experience.

"It will be a big event for us and especially for Digvijay (Singh), as he has never played in such a big tournament," added Ghei, who was also part of the Indian team that qualified for the World Championship final the last time in 1997.

Myanmar, which won the title by five strokes, and Singapore, which finished fourth, also qualified along with India and China for the final.

While Ghei has returned home, Digvijay has gone to Malaysia to train and compete in an Asian Professional Golfers' Association (APGA) event.

Digvijay will be training under well-known coach Kel Llewelyn, the Malaysia based Australian.

"Digvijay will also be taking part in an APGA even next week," his father Niranjan Singh told IANS from his Meerut home.

A happy Niranjan Singh said his son had called up from the scoring desk itself in Singapore to break the good news.

Ghei, who will be resting for the next two weeks here, said the key to success in Singapore was his and Digvijay's hitting the form on the last day of the Nations Cup.

"We did not start too well and did not do well on the first three days of the tournament. Basically we were catching up with the leaders all the time."

The turnaround came Sunday, when Ghei and Digvijay clicked.

"With the alternative shot format, in which both partners take shots one after the other, we played well under pressure to qualify for the final after six years," Ghei said.

He also said that at one stage the Professional Golfers Association of India (PGAI) was not even thinking of sending a team to the Nations Cup as the country's top golfers like Jyoti Randhawa, Arjun Atwal and Jeev Milkha Singh were busy playing other tournaments elsewhere.

But eventually PGAI decided to send the team, which turned out to be a wise decision.

Looking forward to the final at Kiawah Island, Ghei said he, along with Arjun Singh, had played there in 1997 when the final was held there.

He, however, said that would not be a big advantage as the organisers might have made changes to the course since then.

"But I know what to expect there in terms of conditions and weather. And, we will get to interact with the top golfers of the world."

Source: IANS

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