Having beaten all kind of odds in his life to reach his present position, it’s no wonder India’s Shiv Shankar Prasad Chawrasia is not feeling overwhelmed playing his first major international team event.
The 37-year-old from Kolkata is considered by many as the Seve Ballesteros of Indian golf – and his strong short game and imaginative shot-making is just one of the many reasons for such a comparison.
Much like the legendary Spaniard, Chawrasia comes from extremely humble background. His father was one of the greens-keepers at Royal Calcutta Golf Club, the oldest golf club outside the British Isles. He picked up the game watching the members play, some of whom were nice enough to give their used clubs and balls to the youngster.
Having grown up in tough conditions, Chawrasia’s self-made golf swing has won him two titles on the European Tour, three in Asia and several on the Indian PGA Tour.
.@JeevMilkhaSingh with SSP Chawrasia - the dynamite in captain's pocket! @EurAsiaCupGolf pic.twitter.com/6KbFGqizaT
— Joy Chakravarty (@TheJoyofGolf) January 13, 2016This year’s EurAsia Cup comes as a result of a strong 2015 season on the Asian Tour, where he finished fourth (but was the second highest Asian). And he is relishing the challenge.
At 5ft 7in, Chawrasia is easily the smallest man in the field, but ask him who he’d like to play in Sunday’s singles, and his answer is hardly surprising – Lee Westwood.
The well-built Englishman is almost twice Chawrasia’s size, and hits the ball a couple of miles further than him. Westwood is a former world No1, while Chawrasia’s career-best ranking has been 161st. Of course, Westwood has more than 40 international wins against his name and is one of the most accomplished Ryder Cup players in the history of the tournament.
“I don’t mind playing anybody, but if given a choice, I’d like to play against Lee Westwood and beat him,” said Chawrasia.
“I recently played a couple of rounds with him during the WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai, and I really enjoyed the experience. He is a very nice person and he made me feel comfortable.
“But I’d like to win the match. He is Europe’s biggest name in the tournament and there will be no better feeling for me if I can help my team by beating him.”
Asked if he was feeling any pressure ahead of the tournament, Chawrasia smiled: “Really, this is one week where I am not feeling any pressure at all.
“You play any other tournament, and there is no second chance. But here, I know that I can depend on my partner. If I mess it up on any hole, chances are that my partner will save me. You never get that in strokeplay events.
“I also think that if you make a double bogey in a strokeplay championship, you are almost certain not to win the tournament. In match play, you can get away making an eight on a hole and all you have lost is that one hole.”
Chawrasia played the practice round Tuesday with Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat.
