WION Exclusive: ‘Probably rank this higher than other wins,’ says Shubhankar on record finish at The Open

India’s ace golfer Shubhankar Sharma created history at the recently concluded The Open in the United Kingdom. He finished eighth in what was the best result ever for an Indian at Hoylake. Shubhankar’s T8 is also the second best finish for an Indian after Anibaran Lahiri’s T5 at the PGA Championship in 2015.

Reflecting on his success at the Open, the golfer spoke to WION’s Digvijay Singh Deo and shared what it was like to compete among world’s finest in extremely tough conditions over the four days of the tournament.

“I’d probably rank this finish higher than my wins on the European tour,” said Shubhankar who had a bogey-free final day in horrid conditions. “You are always on the edge, especially the first two days when just one bad hole can take you out of the tournament. And the last two days the weather was very rough. There was incessant rain on the final day, every shot was tough from a wedge shot to a 220-yard two-hand one.”

“I just tried to stay in the zone. Not Looking up at the leaderboard, not thinking too much about the shots. So yeah, considering everything, I am really happy with the my performance,” added the golfer.

Sharma also spoke about the mental aspect of the game and said that it is always a challenge to stay in the moment at the Majors but the presence of his family kept him calm.

“It is never easy. You try your best to stay in the moment by retelling yourself again and again,” he said when asked how did keep the overwhelming thoughts away after first round when he was 1-under and just two off the lead. “You try not get too elated or disappointed with a single shot and keep the level headedness throughout that is something which has worked well for me.”

“However, it wouldn’t have been possible without my family. Their presence kept me grounded and calm during the tournament,” added Sharma.

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.