– There’s no better stress test to measure golfers’ heart than the DLF Golf and Country Club. The average strokes per round since this course in New Delhi was first played in 2008 is +1.25. From this Thursday it once again hosts the Hero Indian Open, with its magnificent views, its impossible bunkers, its well-maintained Augusta-style conditioning, its diabolical greens, its slopes, its buggy rides and its lush, hungry jungle waiting left and right at practically every tee. Since 2008 there have been 13,458 birdies and 324 eagles versus 12,521 bogeys, 2,337 double bogeys and 573 triple bogeys or worse. Welcome to the carnage. Courtesy of Gary Player, course designer.
– The owner of the DLF Country Club prides himself on his course being the toughest of the year on the DP World Tour. It’s his trademark and he spares no effort (and then some) to make it so. For example, this year if you miss the tee shot to the left on the 17th hole, there’s a good chance the ball will end up on a very steep concrete path that will easily send it back between 50 and 100 metres. It’s those little things that, taken together, aim to ensure the winner doesn’t reach -10.
– Last year the Spaniard Eugenio Chacarra won with -4 and only three players finished under par. Let that be a sign. However, it seems this year will be a touch more manageable. It’s hot, but not as hot as last year, when the European Tour gave the option to play in shorts, and the forecast calls for a minimal chance of rain on Thursday, Friday and Sunday afternoons. If that rain arrives, the course will become a bit more receptive. A little less tough.
– There are nine Spaniards confirmed in the field and one up in the air. That’s Rocco Repetto, waiting in Hong Kong to see whether he is finally granted the visa and can travel to India. The nine confirmed are: Sebas García, Rafa Cabrera Bello, Ángel Ayora, Jorge Campillo, David Puig, Quim Vidal, Pablo Larrazábal, Nacho Elvira, Iván Cantero, Manu Elvira y Eugenio Chacarra. The latter, as already mentioned, is the defending champion. He secured his first victory on the DP World Tour on his tenth attempt.
– It is the second of four stops of the Asian Swing. That is, the second of four in that mini order of merit that will qualify the top three for the PGA Championship. For now, one of the spots after the first event goes to Jorge Campillo for his runner-up finish at the Hainan Classic.
– There are great matchups for the Spaniards. We have virtually one in each of the most prominent tee times. Ángel Ayora will play with Akshay Bhatia and Thirston Lawrence; David Puig will play with Dan Bradbury and Jordan Gumberg and Eugenio Chacarra plays with Francesco Molinari and Casey Jarvis. Quite something.
– Indeed, Bhatia, who missed the TGL final to play at home (and alongside his main sponsor) on the DP World Tour, is by far the best player in the tournament, ranked 22nd in the world. There are four other world top-10s: Casey Jarvis, David Puig, Smylie and Lawrence.
