Shubhankar Sharma’s leap from India’s prodigy to among the best in the business

The Open Championship, among the oldest and most prestigious golf tournaments in the world, is not synonymous with fine performances by Indians. It was back in 2004 when Jyoti Randhawa recorded the best performance by an Indian at The Open. Randhawa, who had earned his third appearance at The Open via a good show in the International Final Qualifying tournament, carded a three-over 287 overall to take tied 27th. With a terrific run over four rounds at the Royal Liverpool Golf Course, Shubhankar Sharma wrote himself into the record book. Shubhankar grabbed the headlines with a tied-eighth finish, comfortably erasing Randhawa’s mark.

The Open Championship, among the oldest and most prestigious golf tournaments in the world, is not synonymous with fine performances by Indians.

It was back in 2004 when Jyoti Randhawa recorded the best performance by an Indian at The Open. Randhawa, who had earned his third appearance at The Open via a good show in the International Final Qualifying tournament, carded a three-over 287 overall to take tied 27th.

With a terrific run over four rounds at the Royal Liverpool Golf Course, Shubhankar Sharma wrote himself into the record book. Shubhankar grabbed the headlines with a tied-eighth finish, comfortably erasing Randhawa’s mark.

Shubhankar became only the third Indian to claim a top-10 spot at a Major. Anirban Lahiri’s tied-fifth at the 2015 PGA Championship set the benchmark for the nation, while Jeev Milkha Singh rounds the list with his tied-ninth effort at the 2008 PGA Championship.

The 27-year-old Shubhankar has joined elite company, even if he is not too concerned about breaking new ground. “I am not playing for the records. I just want to play my best golf. Jeev, Jyoti, and Anirban are all great players. To be mentioned along with them is an honour in itself,” Shubhankar said.

Shubhankar stood eight shots behind champion Brian Harman, who blitzed his way to the Claret Jug. The American was too good for the field, finishing six shots ahead of Spaniard Jon Rahm and three others tied for second place.

Shubhankar took home $4,03,350 as prize money, and guaranteed a spot for himself in the next edition of The Open. He also moved from 276 to 165 on the Official World Golf Ranking list.