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I1 regard golf as an expensive way of playing marbles, writer GK Chesterton once said. Indeed, golf has for long been associated with money, affluence and power. But is it just a perception or is golf really a game only the rich and the famous can afford?While the cost of playing and pursuing golf are amongst the most expensive among various sports, golf in India is dotted with stories of individuals emerging from humble backgrounds to strike gold. Names like Ali Sher, SSP Chowrasia, Chinnaswamy Muniyappa and Ashok Kumar, apart from being prominent Indian golfers, have something else in common too—they were all caddies to start with. Their experience on the golf course has been their only formal training.With the sport gaining popularity in India, many more players like them are daring to dream. In fact, a small village in Lucknow, Martin Purwa, has produced some big names in the sport. Located inside the La Martiniere College estate, the village is next to the Lucknow Golf Club. For generations, many young boys have worked as caddies at the club and some, like Vijay Kumar, have gone on to play the game at the national level."Indian golfers who made it big initially were erstwhile caddies," says Wing Commander Satish Aparajit (retd), secretary general of The Indian Golf Union. "From Ali Sher becoming the first Indian to win the Indian Open in 1991 to other success stories such as Ashok Kumar, a lot of leading figures of the game in India had humble beginnings. They have something to prove as they get nothing served on a platter. Their determination is just amazing." The situation has only got better with time, he says. "Currently more than 50 golfers in the Professional Tour and 25 to 30 amateurs and juniors are from the caddies' ranks."Looking back at his life and career, Chinnaswamy Muniyappa is a happy man. He began by earning meagre sums by caddying at the Karnataka Golf Association course in Bangalore Today, he is the Indian Open champion and one of the leading faces of Indian golf. "I am happy with my life and with the fact that golf happened to me. But I want to continue and do much better than what I have achieved till date," he says. While he believes that encouragement for the sport has increased quite a bit in the country as compared to his initial days on the course, Muniyappa feels that struggle is still a part of the game. "Today, in terms of popularity, I would rate golf right after cricket. A lot has also been done to encourage golf among the common people. But financial support is still hard to come by. Going professional still is quite expensive," he says. He feels that there are many talented players who are just not able to enter enough tournaments due to lack of sponsors and finances. Muniyappa himself has been relying on the money he won with the Indian Open title to enter competitions.Aparajit concedes that some problems continue to exist but believes that things are only getting better. "Sponsors are very selective these days. Cricket takes so much of sponsorship money away that sponsors shy away from other sports," he says.As for the future of golf in India, he seems excited. "Golf is now closer to the common man. It is increasingly becoming an inexpensive sport and soon it will get popular with the masses. And it has started to happen already. Consider players like Rashid Khan, the top amateur in the country, who comes from a lower middle class background," he says. Adding that the IGU too is working towards this end, Aparajit states that a plan is in the pipeline to come out with a bursary policy for amateurs so as to financially help them and look after them. "These things take some time but I feel we should able to implement it within two to four months," he says.Meanwhile, for those like Muniyappa, the love of the game and the dream to do something big keeps them going and putting on the golf course called life.
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