Indian golfer Shiv Kapur, who clinched his third Asian Tour title in the Capital on Sunday, has found his mojo and wants to play the sport for fun rather than aiming for trophies
Born in 1982, the year of the Asian Games in New Delhi and having grown up in a colony — the Asian Games Village — that was built for the 1982 Asiad, it was almost written in the stars that Shiv Kapur would win an Asian Games gold — he did in 2002 at the Busan Asian Games. So, somewhere deep down in his heart he could be forgiven for believing that if and when golf returned to Olympics, he would be there.
Indian golfer Shiv Kapur tees off during the final day of the India Open tournament of the Asian Tour at New Delhi on Sunday, Pic/AFP
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Life's not a fairytale
Alas, life is not always a fairytale. When golf did return to the Olympics in 2016, Kapur did not make the team. "That deflated me," said Kapur. "I am desperate to make it to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. It is around 1000 days away, but that really is one of my major goals."
He does not want to just play golf. He wants to enjoy it. He wants to design courses — the signature "SK" is his design company. These are things he does not normally discuss. You can only glean them if you have known him long enough. Ages ago, in 2005, the year he started playing on the Asian Tour, he came for the Singapore Open at the challenging Serapong Course. He shot 81 in the first round, but was back at the range saying, "I'm not going to make the cut, but I am not giving up. I am going to return to this course many times in future, so, I might as well get used to it." He shot 71 the next day, and despite missing the cut, he came back beaming. "I got a hang of it," he said.
Earlier this year, Kapur seemed to be tiring while waiting for the second Asian Tour title. He won his first in 2005 at the Volvo Masters. He won in India and also twice on European Challenge Tour. But he wanted more. Before the event in Taiwan, he debated whether he ought to take a break and look after his golf business. When he came to Taiwan, he decided to play for fun and not for results. Guess what? He won.
Shiv Kapur poses with the Asian Tour trophy on Sunday. Pic/AFP
Finding the right mantra
"The call was clear. The game needed to be fun. That seemed to have gone away," he recalled. Three weeks after the win in Taiwan, he was second in Thailand. "Just play the way you want to; that seemed to be the answer," he added. When he came to the Delhi Golf Club (DGC), Kapur decided to treat it like a stroll in the park. "Enjoy the game and no thoughts about winning at DGC, that's what I decided to do," he said. Yes, it worked!
Kapur married his girlfriend Maya in 2016 and become a father this year. The married Kapur won in Taiwan and found his mojo. He went to Take Solutions Masters in Bangalore, a new Asian Tour event in India, when his wife was about to give birth to their first baby. He finished in Bangalore and returned and within 24 hours, he was a father of a baby girl.
He had dreamt of winning at DGC; he had dreamt of holding a trophy. He did all that with great aplomb on Sunday. So, a trick question. Was Maya the lucky charm — first win (Taiwan) after marriage or Veda (first win at DGC) after her birth? Pat comes the Kapur reply, "Both".
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