Randhawa, Jeev looked most impressive

Looking back at the inaugural Xerox Open Golf Championship, I must confess that there were certain plusses and minuses that came out of th...

Looking back at the inaugural Xerox Open Golf Championship, I must confess that there were certain plusses and minuses that came out of the tournament.

The biggest, of course, is the involvement of a new sponsor in the Indian Golf Tour. The reality of the situation today is that unless and until sports get corporate backing, it will struggle to develop. The Indian Golf Tour is lucky to have the support of Xerox Modicorp Limited, and on behalf of all the pros in the country, I would like to thank them and hope they are enthused enough by the spectacular response to come back with a much bigger event next season.

The other high point of the tournament was the performance of Jyoti Randhawa. He played like a champion and deserves every bit of the Rs 97,200 cheque that came his way as part of being a winner. I am now hoping that he carries this form to next week8217;s Honda-Siel PGA Championship at the Delhi Golf Club.

Jeev8217;s comeback was awesome any which way you look at it. Three-under 285 after six months of injury layoff is terrific considering that he hardly played golf as his wrist was in a cast. It is another matter that the man himself was unhappy with his performance.

The pro-am, which was played on Saturday, was a huge success. This is animportant part of any golf tournament as it gives the sponsor a chance to host some of their present and future clients. It provides a huge value for money for the sponsors. Despite it being an early morning shotgun start, the amateur participants were all present for their teeoff. In fact, the number of teams had to be increased at the last moment to accommodate the amateurs.

Among the things that disappointed me was the performance of some our IndianTour regulars. Barring Vijay Kumar, who shot an awful round of five-over 77 on the first day, but then bounced back over the next three days, none could cope with the Classic Golf Resort.

The CGR was set up in international style. The rough was thick and I think the players were a little uncomfortable with the tuft of grass on the fringe of the greens. However, they will have to get used to such courses if they plan to broaden their horizons to Asian PGA Tour and further. This must have been a good test for them considering that this year8217;s Hero Honda Masters is to be played at the Arnold Palmer-designed DLF Golf amp; Country Club. I am sure that our players will be richer in experience after playing the Xerox Open.

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