The last few days in the life of Anirban Lahiri, the highest ranked Indian in the world, is a fascinating example of why life of a professional athlete is not all glamour and fat pay cheques.
Last week, the R&A announced that the 10 highest-ranked players who were not already exempt for next week’s Open championship at Royal Liverpool, will be eligible for the 143rd edition. That got Lahiri, ranked 81, into the mix.
News like that is obviously something every professional golfer wants to hear, but it threw a huge spanner into the best-laid plans of the 27-year-old.
The reigning Asia No1, who is in the field for the PGA Championship at Valhalla next month, recently got married, and because he did not have any playing commitments until then, he had planned his honeymoon – a 10-day vacation in Madagascar.
Apart from upsetting his marital bliss – he received the news on the second day of his honeymoon – it set a whirlwind chain of events.
A couple of days ago, his backpack, which contained plenty of cash, his MacBook, and the booklet of his passport that contained a valid US visa, was stolen from Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris. Luckily, as he had just come out of immigration, he had his and his wife’s current passport in his pocket.
The requisite complaints and reports had to be filed, but more importantly, he now needed to re-apply for a new US visa.
The US visa was not his only problem.
Once he knew he was in the field, he had to cancel all his holiday bookings, and then make sure he reached India in time for a Monday visa appointment at the UK embassy. He also needed to get a few days of practice with his coach, Vijay Divecha.
That was easier said than done.
The fastest connection back home to Bangalore was via Mauritius and Mumbai, but the flight got delayed because of technical issues by nearly seven hours, which meant he missed his onward connection.
Somehow, Lahiri made it back in the nick of time and applied for his UK visa, which takes four to five working days to come through even when fast-tracked. He is keeping his fingers crossed that he will receive it on Friday, so that he can reach Hoylake on Saturday.
But there was more to come.
Knowing Lahiri was away from Bangalore, his coach had left to take care of a project in the Ahmedabad. So, after his appointment at the UK embassy, Lahiri then had to catch a two-hour flight to the western Indian city so that he could practice and plan his Open strategies.
Lahiri, of course, is hoping it will be a smooth ride from here on.
He is no Open bunny, having qualified in 2012 at Royal Lytham and St Anne’s, where he finished tied 31st and even grabbed worldwide attention by making a hole-in-one on the ninth hole in the third round.
“It’s just been crazy. Easily some of my most stressful days and I am not even on a golf course,” said Lahiri. “I am just hoping God has saved all the good days for Thursday to Sunday next week.”
Stricker’s Open snub
Steve Stricker’s decision to pull out of next week’s Open Championship, for the second straight year, is baffling, to say the least.
I can understand his decision to cut back on his playing schedule, but surely, the reduction should not include major championships.
Most professionals will tell you again and again that their career is defined by how well they play at the majors.
By snubbing the Open, Stricker is not only being unfair to golf fans, he is also being unfair to his own talent. It’s almost like he is saying that he is not good enough to face the challenges of links golf.
Unique coincidence
This is perhaps once-in-a-lifetime week for the official world golf rankings.
For the week starting July 7, Adam Scott, Henrik Stenson and Bubba Watson are world No1, 2 and 3. That’s nothing new, and that is
exactly how the three stood last week.
But what is amazing is that the three players this week are each separated by exactly one average point, and more interestingly, Scott has 9.00 average points, Stenson has 8.00 and Watson is on 7.00.
Stat of the Week
1, 5 & 6 – Angel Cabrera was in amazing overall form in winning The Greenbrier Classic. He topped the Greens in Regulation stats (79.2 per cent), was fifth in Strokes Gained – Putting, and sixth in Proximity to the Hole.
Quote of the Week
“I was aware of what I was doing, but it really wasn’t the first and foremost thing that I was concentrating on. Golf doesn’t mean a whole lot sometimes.” – George McNeill, after shooting a 61 and finishing second in The Greenbrier Classic last week.
He played the round knowing his elder sister Michele was losing her battle with breast cancer. At the time of giving the interview, the American did not know that she had already passed away when he was in the middle of the round.
