For star golfer Rashid Khan, winning in Asia is a state of mind

Rashid Khan knows his problems are all in the mind. The talented 23-year-old golfer is playing full time on the Asian Tour this season and though he topped the Professional Golfer’s Tour of India money list last year, he understands winning in Asia means he has to get tougher mentally. “It is all about your mindset,” he told Firstpost during the Louis Phillipe Cup last week. “I know how to chip. I know how to putt. I know how to hit the ball well. It is all about your mindset. That is what I have to work on.” It was a lesson driven home by none other than Tiger Woods. Earlier this month Woods made his maiden appearance in India to play a round at the Delhi Golf Club for a sponsored event. Asked what he picked up from watching the World No. 1, Rashid’s answer was simple: “I learned to be cool and play. I don’t have that,” he admitted. Mistakes still upset Rashid and can cause him to lose his concentration. Such lapses are something he can’t afford against a stiffer level of competition, especially if he wants to win outside of India, something only a few Indian golfers have done consistently. [caption id=“attachment_1412387” align=“alignleft” width=“768”]  File picture of Rashid Khan. AFP[/caption] “It is obviously tough to win a tournament outside India. They have different golf courses, different feel. All the players have the ability to win tournaments. If you want to win a tournament abroad, you have to be focussed all four days. You can’t make a mistake. That is what I have to learn.” That Rashid has the game to win in Asia is not in question. He played five tournaments on sponsor’s exemptions last season and almost won the SAIL-SBI Open last season, only losing out to Anirban Lahiri, India’s highest ranked golfer, in a play-off. And he was in contention on the final day of the Indian Open before a couple of mistakes forced him to settle for third place. He also has the example of the recent crop of Indian golfers who have been winning with regularity in Asia to inspire him. “Look at Anirban - he was third on Asian Tour Order of Merit. [Gaganjeet] Bhullar was fifth. Shiv [Kapur] is in the top 10 [he finished 10th]. “All these players are there. I have played with them so I know what I have to do to do well on the Asian Tour.” Rashid’s journey to the Asian Tour began in Delhi almost 15 years ago. Like most Indian boys, he would play cricket with his friends after school until one day his uncle, Mohd. Maqbool Khan, a former professional golfer, encouraged him to try his hand at golf. “I was only 9 years old,” he says. “At that age, you don’t even know what golf is.” He signed up for the Junior Training Program at the Delhi Golf Course in 1999 and though he found the sport interesting, his love for the game was still subject to a young boy’s whims and fancies. “I left golf for one full year in 2002. I was 12 years old. I don’t know why I stopped. After that, I started again in 2003.” This time there was no stopping him. “My first tournament outside Delhi was in Calcutta. Actually, there were two tournaments. I finished 12th in the first one and the first 12 players got points. I thought: ‘Wow, I got a point’. The next tournament I finished tenth. I felt I was getting better and better.” Then came a break of two months before the next junior tournament in Mumbai but Rashid was determined to keep improving. “I practiced and practiced. I told myself you finished 12th and then tenth now you have to get better. I finished eighth. I was like, man, you can do it.” His first big breakthrough came in 2006, when he won the All-India Junior Championship in Bangalore. He would win the All-India Juniors again in 2008 but what convinced him golf was a career worth chasing was winning the Faldo Series Asia trophy at Mission Hills later the same year in some style. Rashid shot 66 in his final round, including a back-nine 31 in front of six-time Major champion Nick Faldo. “I got a really big boost in China. After that, I didn’t look back.” He would repeat at Mission Hills the next year and go on to win 10 senior amateur titles before turning pro, including the Singapore Amateur, The Northern India Amateur and the Eastern India Amateur Golf Championship. Rashid tasted professional success in his first season, winning the Surya Nepal Masters in 2011 and has added three more victories since then. Last year he won twice, led the tour with 10 top-ten finishes and topped the Order of Merit with Rs 46.38 lakh in prize money. This season Rashid has finished 10th and fourth in his first two PGTI events and has already begun his quest to make amends at the SAIL-SBI Open, the Asian Tour’s first event in 2014. He shot a career best 11-under 61 in the first round, coming home in a stunning 29 shots. He followed that up with 69 in the second to lead by four shots with 36 holes to go. At the Louis Phillipe Cup, Rashid said: “I am playing well, I am focused. Everything is there. It is just gonna be a [good] week. That’s it.” After the opening two rounds, reaching his goal at the first time of asking is now just two good days away. Given his track record, it wouldn’t be surprising if he pulled it off.