A new venue and an extremely competitive field will make the fourth edition of the Euro 1.8 million Avantha Masters a nail-biting affair, according to Yogesh Agarwal, a key member of Avantha Leadership team.
Agarwal, who is the COO of Avantha's flagship company, BILT, is gung ho about the prospect of Jaypee Greens in Greater Noida hosting the event for the first time from March 14-17 with a field that includes British Open winner Colin Montgomerie.
"Our long-term objective is to cater to a wider audience by taking the Avantha Masters to different venues across the country. Therefore, we decided to move the tournament to a new course," Agarwal said.
"The fourth edition of the Avantha Masters promises to be the most competitive as the field will be stronger than ever before. The top professionals from India and Asia along with some big names from Europe will be teeing it up. We could witness yet another nail-biting contest," he added.
SSP Chowrasia won the 2011 title and Agarwal said there is so much depth in Indian golf that he won't be surprised if another Indian emulates the Kolkata golfer this year.
"A number of Indian golfers are in with a chance including Jeev Milkha Singh, Gaganjeet Bhullar and Shiv Kapur, all of whom have been in great form recently," he said.
"Youngsters Anirban Lahiri and Himmat Singh Rai have performed well in Asia over the last two years and would certainly be title contenders. One cannot discount Jyoti Randhawa and former champion SSP Chowrasia either."
Emphasising on the importance of corporate funding in sports, Agarwal said: "The increase in corporate funding and improvement in infrastructure do help in raising the level of a sport in a particular country.
"The involvement of corporate houses and the availability of better facilities make a sport more attractive for youngsters. This in turn results in a larger talent pool for the country and therefore higher expectations."
The Avantha Group sponsors three golf events -- the Avantha Masters, CG Open and BILT Open.
