Asian Tour keeps India slot going with Classic International

By Rahul Banerji

Reluctant to let a key slot fall vacant with the rescheduling of the Take Solutions Masters to fresh dates next season, the Asian Tour has brought on board the $300,000 Classic Golf & Country Club International Championship to fill the gap.

The brand new event will this be played at the Jack Nicklaus-designed Classic Golf & Country Club near Gurgaon from September 12 to 15 with a field of 156 that includes a number of fast-rising Indian names and a good mix of overseas stars.

The Take Solutions was held for the last two years at Bangalore’s KGA course in the second week of August and gave Viraj Madappa his breakthrough win on the Asian Tour last year.

New platform

Rahul Singh, tasked with developing the Asian Tour in India said at a media interaction here on Wednesday that they did not want to lose the opportunity to give players a platform.

“It is the Tour’s responsibility to give players a chance to develop their careers, like Viraj has done since his win last year,” Singh said. “So in place of the Take Solutions event, we found a willing partner in the Classic Golf & Country Club to give especially the home players another opportunity to rise to the next level.

“The Asian Tour is the third largest in the world behind the PGA and European Tours and we have seen a good number of our stars progress on to the bigger stages. We all know who they are.”

Promoting golf

B. Hariharan, managing director of Landbase India, the ITC arm that owns and operates the sprawling and picturesque golf course, added, “Part of our job is to promote the game and when the opportunity presented itself, the club itself put together the event.

“We are very pleased to be back on the Asian Tour after a gap of some 10 years.

The Classic Golf & Country Club last hosted the 2009 Sail Open, made memorable by the record-busting performance of eventual winner Chapchai Nirat of Thailand, who brought home an eye-popping 32-under par card.

So would the venue see a repeat of that score this time around too? “While the course is the kind that can make amateur golfers feel good about their round, we are making sure that it will be a lot more challenging for the professionals,” Hariharan said diplomatically.

Added Singh, “the roughs will be a lot more testing than usual and the landing areas around the greens are going to be demanding.”

Interesting mix

Incidentally, Take Masters winner Madappa, and at least two of the men finishing tied second behind him in Bangalore – Argentine Miguel Carballo and Thailand’s Suradit Yongcharoenchai – will be in the field for this event as well.

Carballo is on something of a streak and will be beck in India as a Tour winner as well, having pocketed the Indonesian Open in Jakarta last week.

The home challenge will see Madappa and fellow first-time winner last year, Khalin Joshi joined by Asia regulars Chikkarangappa S., Rashid Khan, 2017 Yeangder Tournament Players Championship topper Ajeetesh Sandhu among a host of others.

“I have come close many times, but not quite closed the deal. But now with the Classic Golf and Country International, I am hoping the home atmosphere will help me get past the line,” said ‘Chikka’.

The new generation of Indians on the premier regional tour will be represented by rising stars Aadil Bedi, Kshitij Naved Kaul and Karandeep Kochhar while form man Aman Raj will also be closely followed after a sold performance in Jakarta and elsewhere.

The field also includes two amateurs in Harshjeet Sethie and Kartik Sharma, who will be representing India at the Nomura Cup later in the year as well as Saurav Rathi who turns pro at this event.

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