Inaugural Vishwa Samudra Open to tee off at DGC with stellar field

New Delhi, Dec 9 (PTI) A stellar field, including international winners SSP Chawrasia, Veer Ahlawat, and Ajeetesh Sandhu, will vie for honours when the inaugural Vishwa Samudra Open tees off at the prestigious Delhi Golf Club (DGC) here on Tuesday.
     Presented by the legendary Kapil Dev, the Rs 2 crore event marks the return of a PGTI tournament to the Delhi Golf Club after three years.
     The impressive field features Rahil Gangjee, Gaurav Ghei, Rashid Khan, Khalin Joshi, Chikkarangappa S, Yuvraj Sandhu, as well as other leading Indian names such as Om Prakash Chouhan, Olympian Udayan Mane, Karandeep Kochhar, and Manu Gandas.
     The foreign challenge will be led by Czech Republic’s Stepan Danek, Bangladeshis Jamal Hossain, Badal Hossain, Md Akbar Hossain, Md Jakiruzzaman Jakir, Sri Lankans N Thangaraja and K Prabagaran, Andorra’s Kevin Esteve Rigaill, Canada’s Sukhraj Singh Gill, Japan’s Makoto Iwasaki, and Americans Dominic Piccirillo and Digraj Singh Gill.
     Besides Gaurav Ghei, the host venue Delhi Golf Club will also be represented by professionals Sachin Baisoya, Harshjeet Singh Sethie, Manav Jaini, Arjun Singh, Naman Dawar, Karan Vasudeva, Saarthak Chhibber, Harsh Gangwar, Pawan Kumar, and Rohit Baisoya.
     "This joint initiative of the Vishwa Samudra Group and the PGTI will go a long way in further strengthening the tour by creating more playing opportunities for professionals and significantly increasing the annual prize money on offer on the PGTI," said Kapil Dev, President of PGTI and Tournament Host.
     "If we can have more such companies that offer Rs 5 crore, Rs 10 crore, Rs 20 crore, or Rs 100 crore prize money, then foreign players, who make so much money abroad, can also come and play in India."
     When asked if a shorter format similar to the Indian Premier League could be introduced, Kapil said: "A lot of companies want to have only two-day tournaments, but they are not recognized internationally.
     "We are also concerned about players’ rankings. They play to improve their rankings. So, if the international body agrees to two-day tournaments, I think it will be on the cards in a second. Like T20 or something similar, which we hope is possible."
     On whether pollution levels in Delhi would be a factor, Kapil said: "I was born in India, lived here, so I don’t know about pollution. It doesn’t affect me. Now there is a lot of technology. I have lived here and played my sport here.
     "It is the government’s responsibility to take care of us, but our job is to play and not complain."
     Thanking the sponsors, Uttam Singh Mundy, CEO of PGTI, said, “The event gains further significance as it will be the last full-field event of the season, providing professionals with a great opportunity to make an impact in the TATA Steel PGTI Ranking.
     "With a star-studded field vying for top honours in the pristine conditions at the Delhi Golf Club, a thrilling week of golfing action is in store."

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)