Anirban Lahiri will be among the strong contenders at what can be considered his happy hunting ground when he leads the Indian charge at the Asian and European Tour co-sanctioned Hero Indian Open golf tournament starting here tomorrow.
Lahiri, who is the highest ranked player in the elite field where he sits in 39th position on the Official World Golf Ranking, will challenge for top honours at the Delhi Golf Club against title holder Siddikur Rahman and Spain legend Miguel Angel Jimenez.
Scott Hend of Australia, a six-time Asian Tour winner, Jyoti Randhawa, only the second player to win three Indian Open titles, Thaworn Wiratchant, Jeev Milkha Singh and Marcus Fraser will also feature in the event which is sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour for the first time.
"We have four Asian Tour members win the last four co-sanctioned events. It will be nice to continue that streak. It is nice to have so many of our members winning events but I would like to say that I want an Indian to keep this trophy on home soil," says Lahiri.
"This is the event you want to win as an Indian. The Indian Open is a tournament which is steep in history. Delhi Golf Club has such a fantastic history to it. It is definitely one of those events where you want to play and win it," he added.
Apart from Lahiri, who won three Asian Tour titles at DGC, the focus will also be on Spanish star Jimenez, who will play on Indian soil for the first time since 2008. Ranked 45th in the world right now, Jimenez is wary of the tree-lined course.
