Fauna lends a hand to Randhawa

These days, Jyoti Randhawa roars into the Delhi Golf Club on his big Yamaha like it was his driveway. It almost is. Well, maybe not the parking lot but the green parts do belong to him. The Indian Open happens to be his favourite golf tournament and two of his three wins in that event have come at the DGC. In between, he has played a fixture on the domestic tour at that golf club and he went ridiculously low in that one. Asked recently what it takes to win at the DGC, Randhawa finally let out his secret. As it turns out, there is no elaborate game plan. All you need to do is hit it straight and putt well. It’s that simple. Anybody can do that! I hit it straight every time I’m faced with a tap-in putt. Okay, I confess, it gets a little tricky when the ball needs to go forward a longer way. Randhawa has me there. As we know from the last time he played at the DGC, he can hit it dead straight even with a mid-iron.

Slam-dunking it from over 150 yards out to win a tournament is pretty cool. Being the wildlife fan that he is, I have a sneaking feeling the fauna at the DGC reciprocate the feeling when it comes to Jyoti Randhawa. Though none of the competition has admitted it so far, the deer could be snorting at or poking unsuspecting golfers when nobody is looking. Then, there are the peacocks. It’s not easy lining up a curling 10-footer when you are being pecked in the behind.

The cobras are generally in hibernation at this time of the year, but with record crowds expected at the Indian Masters, those guys are in for a rude awakening. Grumpy reptiles don’t make good hosts. Visitors stand at a disadvantage here. I’m imagining a scenario where Ernie Els is settling in to unleash a big one, and just then, he feels something cold sliding up his trouser leg. He’s a big strong man and maybe he can handle the intrusion. What about Mark O’Meara? If he gets into a face-off with an animal with big horns, will he be able to outrun the beast? After all at 51, the poor guy is past his prime. Can his legs carry him to safety? These are pertinent questions here. And of course, a 15th club is against the Rules of the Game. Shotguns are not allowed. Randhawa has got it worked out.

Tip I tried: If there is one thing that separates the haves from the have-nots, it’s the short game. From about 50 yards in, the pros are lethal. Everybody talks about O’Meara’s good friend Tiger Woods’ ability to smash a golf ball but more often than not it’s his chipping and putting that wins him lots of money. Among lesser mortals, there are some fortunate ones who are good at tapping a golf ball without trying too hard. For others, there is technique involved. Most get too anxious to see the ball roll in. Here’s something that holds good especially when faced with putts inside 10 feet: study the topography and decide on the route the ball is going to travel. Once you have that sorted out, hit the ball and look up only when you hear it drop. Do that and you will hear that sweet tinkling sound more regularly.

— Prabhdev Singh is Editor, Golf Digest India