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Journalism of Courage
8220;YOU should be better than me. Being like me is very easy.8221; Jyoti Randhawa may have become the first Indian golfer to make the cut8212;that is, rank in the top 73 players and finally tie for the 27th place8212;at the recent British Open, but his feet are firmly on the ground.
His advice is directed at a teenaged girl, one of the many golfing enthusiasts who approach him during a practice session at the DLF Golf Course on the outskirts of Delhi. Each congratulatory comer requires Randhawa to straighten up from his shot and shake hands, but the politeness never falters.
8216;8216;I never thought about being a great golfer even five years ago. I didn8217;t try very hard, it just happened,8217;8217; Randhawa says. But the newest notch in his club has triggered a desire to join the top league. 8216;8216;If we keep performing like this, golf in India might get very close to cricket in the next five years. I am working on that.8217;8217;
The 32-year-old had never given professional golf a thought when he first teed off as a school student. Randhawa picked up the basics from his Army officer father, but his interest grew when he saw his cousins Bunty8212;now his caddie8212;and Bamby Randhawa take it up professionally. 8216;8216;They used to travel a lot, and go abroad. I liked that,8217;8217; he recalls.
Randhawa started off by joining Bharat Petroleum as an amateur golfer while pursuing a B Com degree from Meerut University. That also took care of his expenses, and he dropped the idea of joining the Army. The decision, by the way, met with no resistance at home. 8216;8216;I remember when I was in school, my father told me, 8216;If you want to be a scooter mechanic, go ahead. But be the best mechanic8217;,8217;8217; says Randhawa, who played amateur golf from 1990-94.
That was also the time he met Chitrangda Singh, sister of his friend Digvijay, also a rising golfer. She was in Class VIII while Randhawa was studying for a bachelor8217;s degree but the fact that their fathers were in the same brigade in Meerut helped their friendship. 8216;8216;When she joined Lady Irwin College in Delhi, we realised we had some feelings for each other,8217;8217; he says. They got married four years ago, after five years of courtship.
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I never thought about being a great golfer even five years ago. I didn8217;t try very hard, it just happened
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After winning two professional tournaments as an amateur, Randhawa decided to take the plunge in 1994. 8216;8216;Luckily, turning pro was not a disadvantage so far as employment with Bharat Petroleum was concerned. My initial salary there was Rs 6,000 a month, which went up to Rs 10,000. So the Rs 60,000-70,000 I earned a year from professional golf was a lot of money for me,8217;8217; he says.
Tying at the 27th place in the British Open8212;and pocketing the prize money of pound;29,0008212;has eased the money targets. 8216;8216;My ambitions ended when I bought a 1000 cc motorbike and a collection of a few guns,8217;8217; he laughs, bringing out his cellphone to show off the photograph of his Yamaha.
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THE GOLF WIFE
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EVEN as the husband is hailed as the new star on the golf firmament, the wife is babystepping into Bollywood. Chitrangda Singh chose an unusual debut vehicle in Sudhir Mishra8217;s Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi, an Emergency love story that has already hit the festival circuit in Berlin and Los Angeles and is to be shown at the Edinburgh Festival in August before releasing in India in September. |
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Chitrangda sounds as excited when she recalls that he bought her a Cartier watch for her birthday last year. 8216;8216;I never expected such huge earnings. So I respect it a lot,8217;8217; she says, adding she 8216;8216;nearly fell off the chair8217;8217; when she discovered that he had bought an Armani jacket for Rs 1.5 lakh. 8216;8216;I told him, 8216;We are Army officers8217; kids. We can8217;t do this8217;,8217;8217; she laughs.
Randhawa now owns a penthouse in Gurgaon and two cars, a Suzuki Vitara and a Honda City. On the cards is a custom-modified Ferrari, which will be four inches higher to allow for ground clearance on Indian roads. Interestingly enough for a sportsman who has just completed Indian golf8217;s star troika8212;alongside Jeev Milkha Singh and Arjun Atwal8212;Randhawa has one sporting regret: not being able to make it to the national shooting team. 8216;8216;When I give up golf, I8217;ll definitely take up shooting,8217;8217; he promises. Even now, he trains with international shooters Zoravar Singh and Mansher Singh.
8216;8216;They give me shooting lessons, I help them with golf,8217;8217; he says. Another person who has picked up golf from him is Chitrangda. In fact, Randhawa says she can beat him in putting. 8216;8216;That hurt my pride. I improved my putting because of that, and it made me win a tournament in Japan,8217;8217; he admits.
That8217;s not the only way Chitrangda has helped his career. She also reads books on diet and sports psychology to give him some tips. The 26-year-old also sees herself as his worst critic. 8216;8216;I know he is capable of much more than what he has accomplished so far. He should have finished in the top 10 at the British Open. I told him finishing 27th is not enough,8217;8217; she says. Not many will disagree with that.
