Par Excellence

Shooting up in world rankings, Shubhankar Sharma is the face of India’s golf resurgence

- Neeru Bhatia

For the undulating, lush greens at the DLF Golf and Country Club, Gurugram, it was a special moment. Its very own boy was back, having made his mark in the golfing world. Shubhankar Sharma, 21, an army kid who grew up in this town and started his golf journey on this turf, arrived on the 18th green on the fourth day of the Hero Indian Open 2018 in March. The galleries overflowed with fans, young and old. Despite being the overnight joint leader, Shubhankar had a torrid back nine on the final day, but ended it with a birdie. He doffed his cap to loud cheers. The Indian Open ended in playoff between Andrew ‘Beef’ Johnston, and, eventual winner Matt Wallace.

A month later, he is living the dream at the Augusta Masters. He recorded, on his phone, his first drive down Magnolia Lane, towards the revered course, saving it for posterity.

For the boy who turned pro at 16 because “I thought I was ready for it, even though a lot of guys told me not to,” life as a golfer has been on the upswing of late. “I have always done well whenever I set the bar higher for myself,” he said.

After becoming India’s number one amateur golfer, Shubhankar played in the Asian Tour Qualifying School 2016 and got his full card on it. In December 2017, he had won the Johannesburg Open, which is co-sanctioned by the European and Asian Tours. He won another co-sanctioned event—the Malaysian Open in February—making him the only two-time winner on the European Tour this season. The wins got him a full card at the European Tour. Ranked 521 in the world in November, Shubhankar jumped to 64 after five top-ten finishes on the European Tour.