Road to Rio: Can golfer Shiv Chawrasia capitalise on a thin lineup at Olympics 2016?

Name: Shiv Shankar Prasad Chawrasia Age: 38 Discipline: Golf Category: Individual men’s golf Qualification: Chawrasia is ranked 44 in the International Golf Federation’s Olympic qualifying ranking list. The cut for the Rio Olympics is the top 60. Strength: Known as for his strong short game. Nicknamed ‘Chip-Putt-Sia’ for the same. Past Olympic performance: Debut Past record/wins: Emaar-MGF Indians Masters (2008), Avantha Masters (2011) , Panasonic Open India (2014), Hero Indian Open (2016) [caption id=“attachment_2897348” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] SSP Chawrasia at a Pro Am event before the Singapore Open. AFP[/caption] Golf makes a triumphant return to the Summer Olympics Games after a gap of 112 years and Shiv Shankar Prasad Chawrasia leads India’s strong contingent. The Rio Olympics will welcome golf, after the event was last played at an Olympic Games in 1904, in St Louis. The qualification for golfers for the Rio Games is discerned by the International Golf Federation’s Olympic qualifying ranking list. The top 60 qualify for the Rio Olympics and Chawrasia makes the cut in lieu of his 44nd rank. In a tournament that has seen the top ranked golfers dropping out due to Zika virus concerns, a golden opportunity stands, ripe for the taking, for Chawrasia. With no Rory McIlroy, Jason Day, Jordan Speith and Dustin Johnson, the medal tally for India could potentially increase. One would think that a sport like golf, with its rich origins would not lack financial backing but Chawrasia has already faced his fair share of problems. A claim of approximately rupees 25 lakh, in order to fund his travel, coach, physio and trainer costs was made through the Indian Golf union, but the Kolkata-born son of a greenskeeper received no funding from India. As luck would have it, Chawrasia, due to his earnings, can sustain his Olympic campaign. The 38-year old told Indian Express, “I’m contractually committed to a certain number of events every year. It’s in the back of the mind, but what I’m doing is not specifically for the Olympics. Irrespective of Rio, a lot of this would have been part of my schedule. In that respect, I’m spending what I would have.” Chawrasia’s participation in the Olympics is off high importance to India for some reasons. The nation’s meager total of 26 medals in all Olympic Games till date make it a priority to attempt as many shots at gold as possible. And as a thin field of golfers line up for the Olympics, it is of paramount importance that the likes of Chawrasia push for a medal, as he remains a top contender for India and could create history in an event that the Olympics hasn’t seen in more than a century.