Why Anirban Lahiri’s almost Cinderella story at Players Championship is good news for Indian golf

Golfing hory is replete with players one would generally classify as journeymen having their day in the sun on one of the game’s greatest stages.Anirban Lahiri has been playing on the PGA Tour, the most prestigious circuit in the sport, for a long time but had almost become the forgotten man of Indian golf. Shubhankar Sharma won two European Tour events on the bounce a few years ago and led a World Golf Championship (WGC) tournament going into the final round to become the new numero uno, while Lahiri seemed destined to jostling with the cut line on a weekly basis while struggling to keep his Tour card every season.
But on Monday, during the delayed finish of the Players Championship at acclaimed TPC Sawgrass, the Indian almost scripted a Cinderella story. And though he finished short a shot, Lahiri gave ample indication that he could be back in the big league after years in the wilderness.His previous statements about what his game was lacking at a particular time, what he was working on, and the technical modifications he was making were always bullish in nature but taken with a pinch of salt.

In that context, what Lahiri achieved during the long week at the Players Championship – often referred to as the ‘fifth Major’ – came as a bolt from the blue. The rain and frequent weather interruptions, which resulted in him going almost two days without hitting a ball, were other challenges of the seemingly endless tournament. Add to it, the cold and wet weather and unusually low temperatures forced the 34-year-old from Bengaluru to put on four or five layers of clothing while on the Pete Dye-designed layout.
Lahiri was around the top of the leaderboard from the start of the tournament and going past experience, one would have expected him to fade away as the days went . After all, the Indian had often found himself in similar situations at the start, only to falter as the business end approached. There’s a reason he had not won on the PGA Tour, with his previous best finish being a tied for second place at the 2017 Memorial Tournament.But this week was different as he hung in through the tough times and if he didn’t end up with the trophy, it was more due to the brilliance of eventual winner Cameron Smith than any frailty on the Indian’s part.
And Lahiri had not chosen a bad stage to turn the corner. The PGA Tour’s flagship event had a total prize money of $20 million (an increase of $5 million from last year, comfortably the biggest individual event purse in golf hory. It’s nearly double that of any of the Majors, with the winner getting richer $3.6 million and receiving a guaranteed three-year exemption into the Open Championship, Masters and US Open). The financial windfall of $2.18 million made it an immensely rewarding week for the Indian. With a second-place finish, the son of an Army doctor may have signalled the second coming in his golfing career.
Anirban Lahiri, of India, reacts to a shot on the during the final round of play in The Players Championship golf tournament Monday. (AP Photo)
Mind over matter
Stroke-play golf is played over four days and 72 holes. With the little ball at the mercy of the elements, there is a lot of scope for things to go wrong. Lahiri, who led a shot going into the final round, had a double-bogey on the eighth hole which, in the final analysis, may have proved the difference. But a lot of elite sport is played in the mind and he jumped back into contention over the final stretch. Smith seemed to have it sewn up but Lahiri’s birdie at the iconic island green on the 17th hole, coupled with the Aussie’s bogey on the last made things interesting. Another birdie on the final hole would have resulted in a playoff, but the Indian couldn’t manage that.
He may come across as affable, but a long barren stretch has made Lahiri desperate to get in the winners’ circle after seven years.
Anirban Lahiri, of India, reacts after missing a shot on the 18th hole during the final round of play in The Players Championship golf tournament. (AP Photo)
“I want to win,” he stressed. “I’ve been here seven years, haven’t gotten over the line yet. That’s definitely a monkey I want to get off my back. Today was as good an opportunity as any. I guess at one point on 16 I thought it was kind of out of reach, but then again, birdieing 17, kind of opened the door. But I gave it a good go. Made some makes today that I could have avoided, but that’s golf.”

After cards of 67-73-67-69 that almost made Lahiri the second Indian after Arjun Atwal to win on the PGA Tour, his next goal would be to contend regularly. The Majors now come one after another – starting with the Masters in less than a month – and the confidence gained from this performance could go a long way. Putting four quality rounds together has been an issue with Lahiri in recent times, and he would do well not to fall into bad habits again.Shubhankar hasn’t hit the heights after bursting onto the scene with two titles on the trot. Aditi Ashok came agonisingly close to an Olympic medal in Tokyo, but has not hit the headlines since.
Lahiri needs to keep the kettle boiling, for the sake of Indian golf.