The grass is greener on the other side of life

So as the country’s nascent women’s professional golf tour embarked on its second season this year, Nikki’s was one of the few new names on the entry list. She has joined as a B class professional, the category for those who have not been ranked on the feeder amateur circuit.

“I resigned this February,” she says. “Though I had been planning it for a few months.”

An MBA in IT and Marketing from Pune’s Indian Institute of Modern Management, she worked with advertising firm JWT in Bangalore for a year before joining ING Vysya Life Insurance four years ago and got into the business of insurance selling. Earning “close to a lakh and-a-half” a month, she says her sales figures had been top of the pile the past two years. Till she heard about the tour.

“I spoke to the people in charge, and was convinced I wanted to give myself a chance. I had always wanted to be a professional sportsperson,” she says.

Talking of sport, there isn’t much she hadn’t tried her hand at. While in Sacred Hearts High School in Bangalore, Nikki, daughter of an army officer, played tennis for her club and was a state-level hockey player.

“I had to quit because of a back injury during a camp. We moved to Chennai the next year, and there I set state records in javelin throw, shot put and discus throw.”

So why golf now? “It’s a sport you can play competitively at any age. I first played golf while in college in Mysore, as my father wanted company. He taught me the game for two years.”

Once the decision was made, the planning was as meticulous as another business project. So in came a personal coach, a yoga trainer, a fitness expert, a sports doctor, and even a sports counsellor. The golf club kit was sponsored by her web designer sister in the US.

The contingent hasn’t begun travelling with her though — “I’m not good enough yet” — but the targets have been clearly charted out. “I have given myself two years on the domestic tour, and then I’ll try get on the Asian Tour.”

But business has not been completely left behind. With her handy marketing skills, Nikki is on the verge of landing herself a sponsorship deal with a leading Indian IT services company. This would help her combine her dream of playing with the economics of golf. After all, as she says: “A lot can happen over golf.”