Rakshit returned as the best Indian at T-46 in Singapore
The IGU’s failures to make any progress despite regular grandiose press releases , were exposed in full sight as the 3 member Men’s IGU national Team comprising Deepak Yadav, Arin Ahuja, and Rakshit Dahiya failed miserably at the World Amateur Men’s Team Championship (Eisenhower Trophy) . Despite being played in relatively familiar Singapore, the IGU team finished an appalling 33rd out of 36 teams in the prestigious biennial World Amateur Team Championship. The team aggregated 145-150-150-146 (15-over 591) over four rounds at the Tanah Merah Country Club, where testing conditions exposed the gap between India and the global elite.
The IGU has made claims of forming a national squad, appointing a national coach, high performance manager, international exposure – but without any evidence of any real substantial activity and all this was exposed on the world stage.
Will this abject failure and apathy on the part of the IGU stimulate them to change their ways ? It is doubtful – mostly it will be brushed under the carpet expertly like so many other failures.
First up was that no coach or captain accompanied the team. Was there enough effort made to keep the highly ranked amateurs – Kartik Singh and Veer Ganpathy on the amateur team for one more month instead of them joining the pro ranks just a few weeks prior to this all important international event ?
Among the trio, 18-year-old Rakshit Dahiya, who recently joined Oakland University, Michigan, was India’s top performer, shooting 72-72-76-71 for a total of 3-over 291 to place T-46 in the individual standings. His final-round 71 was one of the few bright spots for the contingent, showing glimpses of composure and potential.
Deepak Yadav, son of Delhi Golf Club staff Ganesh Yadav, produced rounds of 73-79-74-77 to finish T-91 at 15-over 303, while Arin Ahuja carded 75-78-83-75 (23-over 311) to end 104th in the 108-player field.
Looking ahead, the next big test awaits in the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship to be held in Dubai from October 23–26, where Rakshit Dahiya, Raghav Gulati, Ranveer Mitroo, Anshul Mishra, and Harman Sachdeva will represent India.
Whether this young group can rise from the disappointment in Singapore and deliver a better performance in Dubai remains to be seen — but for Indian amateur golf, the urgency for progress has never been clearer.
Team India’s results at the World Amateur have remained consistently poor for the past decade-
Year Team Finish
2023 – Abu Dhabi Shaurya Bhattacharya, Rohit Narwal, Yuvraj Singh 33rd
2022 – Paris Raghav Chugh, Milind Soni, Rayhan Thomas T-31
2018 – Ireland Aadil Bedi, Kshitij Naveed Kaul, Rayhan Thomas 31st
2016 – Mexico Aalaap IL, Arjun Prasad, Kshitij Naveed Kaul T-31
2014 – Japan Manu Gandas, Udayan Mane, Feroz Garewal T-29