Hoylake (England), Jul 19 (PTI) Flanked by his coach Jesse Grewal and family, Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma will expect a good outing at his third campaign at The Open Championship beginning here on Friday.
Sharma, who also played The Open in 2018 and 2019 and finished T-51 and 51st on the two occasions, is looking forward to a good week after having come over to the venue last month to play a few practice rounds at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club, which is hosting the 151st Open, nine years after it last hosted the event in 2014.
Sharma and Anirban Lahiri are the only two Indians to have played a Major since the start of 2018.
Sharma, playing his sixth Major this week, is the only one to have made the cut. Earlier this year Lahiri played the 2023 PGA and missed the cut.
For Sharma, The Open has always been special. For it falls around his birthday. This time as on the past occasions, his birthday falls bang in the middle of the four playing days. Sharma turns 27 on July 21, which will also be the second day of the last Major of the year.
“The Open is my favourite major. It has always been, just with how the tournament was telecast in India also and with the TV timings. It was perfect for me to come back after school and watch it. It worked perfectly on the weekend as well,” said Sharma.
“I guess that is also one of the reasons why I like The Open. Even when I was a kid, it was around my birthday. So it used to be a double celebration for me.
“The last time I was at The Open, it was played at Portrush and I remember the final round was on my birthday. The first time I played The Open in Carnoustie, I celebrated by making the cut and my birthday was day after that. So it is very special.” With two of his most ardent supporters, coach Grewal and father also there, it will be a special week.
“I came here on Monday. It helps because once I’ve seen the course. The prep now has been on short game and the gym. My whole family is here. I’m really happy as my mother and sister are here,” said Sharma.
“I have been on the road for a while so I missed my mother’s food and with the family around, it helps me take my mind off golf in the evenings and that is relaxing.” Having home-cooked food from mother’s kitchen means he can have the choicest vegetarian food.
“That means a lot,” said Sharma with a smile.
Sharma will play his first round with Finn Kalle Samooja, who played alongside the Indian on the Asian Tour, and American Gunner Wiebe and the trio starts at 3.34 pm local time (8.04 pm IST).
Sharma was here at Hoylake to play a few practice rounds last month. But the weather then was dry.
“It was playing very different. I was here for three days. It was really dry and the ball was running forever, especially in downwind it was running like 70 to 80 yards. It’s a lot greener now,” the Indian said.
“The last time I was here, they didn’t get the rain that they wanted. So after the recent rains it is playing really different but the layout is the same. The bunkers are the same. We did have a bit of a game plan after we played those three rounds. So all that prep helped. Just to get that whole vibe and feel of The Open as the stands were up three weeks ago already, was really helpful.
“I’ve been telling my coach (Jesse Grewal) and my dad (Col ML Sharma) that I’ve been playing really well. They are both here. There were a few technical issues maybe a month ago that I was trying to figure out with the swing with the clubs as well,” he added. PTI