Golden Greens Golf Club hosts ‘Women in Golf’ Pro-Am

By Suchitra Ramesh

Golf as an interface between sport and the corporate world was on display at the Golden Greens Golf Club last week in the form of a Pro-Am played ahead of the ongoing WGAI tournament at the venue.

The sold out event was a celebration of women in golf, with close to 30 of the best women professional golfers of India teaming up with 120 amateurs from the NCR region to do battle.

The event was presented by Thriwe, a global consumer benefits marketplace. Other sponsors included the creative agency Swaruh, Srixon and RV On.

The Pro-Am facilitated interaction between the WGAI professionals and amateurs from the corporate world, towards possibilities of future sponsorships and support to the women’s tour.

Towards that end, Thriwe chief executive Dhruv Verma and Golden Greens Golf Club CEO Ravi Grover committed to support Indian women golfers.

Before the start of the competition, the global ‘Save Soil’ campaign presentation was made to increase awareness on the soil health crisis, an initiative from the Isha Foundation.

Texas Scramble

Competition was in the form of a Texas Scramble, with one pro teaming up with three amateurs. The winners were Smriti Mehra’s team of Anand Sharma, Manpreet Manhas and Vipin Sethi with a net score of -22.

The runners up had a net score of -19, with Geetika Ahuja teaming up with Col. Narendra Pal S. Alhwat, Col. Kishore Thakur and Jaideep Brar.

Amateur winners received Srixon golf bags and runners-up got push-carts. Pro winners received gift vouchers as the Mansingh’s token of appreciation.

Although there is increasing awareness of women’s golf In India, financial support is still lacking. The enormous talent pool rarely translates into promising careers due to various challenges.

Growing the game requires continuous support on all fronts including travel, nutrition, training, infrastructure, to convert the sport into a viable career opportunity.

This would require corporates to come forward to support the professional tour to increase visibility and bring in more and more youngsters into the sport who can go on to fly the Indian flag high at the global stage.

Also read: Gaurika fires flawless 65 for three-shot lead at Golden Greens