It is official now. As reported first in The Indian Express last week, the European PGA Tour will be held in Delhi in February 7-10. The ball has been set rolling and the dates, the venue and even the number of Indian golfers who would rub shoulders with the best from among the EPGA Tour players has been decided.The inaugural EPGA Tour will be worth $ 2.5 million, the biggest ever seen in this part of world. Of course, the Big Three — Jeev Milkha Singh, Jyoti Randhawa and Shiv Kapur — who are the regulars on the EPGA would be part of it. But the rest of the Indian pros, too, will have their chance to have a swing at it as the numbers for Indian participants is set at 20, based on the the domestic Order of Merit. There are also offers for three amateurs who can play among the best.That is the shot in the arm for Indian golfers, whose stocks have risen ever since the Jeevs, Jyotis and Shivs have made a mark for themselves on the Tour events.With a prize money of $2.5 million, the event promoted and organised by Golf in Dubai, who are the promoters and organisers of events like the Dubai Desert Classic and the Dubai Ladies Masters, will not only be the richest ever held in the country but would also help enhance the portfolio of the tournament, christened the Indian Masters.As for the organisers, they are looking to host it at the Delhi Golf Club course —best suited for all concerned with over 100 media personnel coming to cover the event.In a statement issued from Dubai, chief executive of the European Tour George O’Grady has said: “The growth of the Indian economy has coincided with the emergence of golf as a major sport in the country. We are always keen to expand our tournament portfolio into new territories and we believe that the Indian Masters offers huge potential on that front.”Meanwhile, Indian Golf Union president JJ Singh, on his part, lavished praise on the event saying it was a historic moment for the sport in the country. “It is the result of the growing status of the game of golf in India,” he adds.Even though the Asian Tour, in a statement today, has said that it is appalled with the European Tour’s plans to stage a tournament in India without the sanction of the Asian Tour next February, Brandon D’ Souza, the Indian promoters of the EPGA Tour, rubbished it as saying that the Asian Tour was not looking at the positive side of it.“Where else can you have 20 or more Indians competing among the best? It has to be taken in that spirit. It’s only going to help the lot of Indian golfers,” said D’Souza.But executive director of Asian Tour, Kyi Hla Han, called the “unethical and against the protocol that exists within the framework of the International Federation of PGA Tours, of which both the Tours are full members.”Han also points out that since the Asian Tour became a member of the International Federation of PGA Tours, all new events that the European Tour has been involved within Asia have been co-sanctioned with the Asian Tour. Over the past decade, the Asian Tour has provided a strong platform for the success of India ‘s current crop of top players and the Asian Tour is fully committed to the growth of golf in India and Asia.The Asian Tour fully respects and cooperates with the Indian Golf Union and was happy to step in to ensure the continuance of one of Asia’s longest standing national Opens, the Hero Honda Indian Open, in 2005 when support was required.This action, says Han, reflects on the European Tour’s aggressive direction without any concern for the protocol of the International Federation of PGA Tours and highlights an invasive position on Asia.
