PGA Championship 2017, Diary: Anirban Lahiri takes time out for fans, Jimmy Walker gifts a telescope

Anirban Lahiri may not have won as yet on the PGA Tour but he is well known among the knowledgeable golf fans around. Followed by a lot of Indian fans based in the United States, Lahiri gets frequent requests for photographs, selfies and of course autographs. [caption id=“attachment_3917371” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Anirban Lahiri engaged in a discussion with his coach Vijay Divecha.[/caption] The ever-smiling and courteous Lahiri always obliges. “Singing a few flags or memorabilia for kids and getting into some pictures with them gives them great and satisfies us a lot,” says Lahiri. “They are the ones who makes us,” Lahiri said. On Wednesday, after finishing his practice round and the Driving Range, Lahiri patiently signed a lot of flag, giant golf balls and autograph books, too. Defending champion Jimmy Walker has fellow champs gazing at the stars Gazing at the stars the Champions Dinner at the Augusta Masters is famous and more talked about in the world of golf. But the PGA of America also has it own annual Champions Dinner held on the eve of the Championships. At the dinner this week were 15 Champions – 14 PGA Champions and 2017 PGA Professional Champion Omar Uresti. As per the tradition, defending champion Jimmy Walker hosted the dinner and the meal of his meal of choice was 14-ounce, bone-in, prime filet mignon, with brussels sprouts and baked mac & cheese. Also as per tradition, Walker, who loves astronomy and gazes regularly at the stars in the skies, gifted his fellow champions a state-of-the-art Celestron Inspire 100AZ Refractor telescope. Of course, the unique gift was a huge hit. Childhood coach Vijay Divecha by Lahiri’s side Lahiri’s childhood coach, Vijay Divecha, who continues to be his coach-cim-mentor even now, is here this week. Having arrived into US a couple of week earlier, Divecha was with Lahiri at the RBC Canadian Open last week and stayed on till the PGA. “He understands me well and it is always great to have him around. I ask him to join me every 3-4 months to iron out niggles,” says Lahiri. Michael Jordan’s initiation and tryst with golf This one from the PGA Tour Media department is a gem. Apparently, while he was in school in the early 1980s at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, three-time All-American golfer Davis Love III and UNC basketball player Buzz Peterson introduced the game of golf to Peterson’s roommate – the guy who goes by the name of Michael Jordan. While legend has it that Love gave Jordan his first lesson, it seems that is not exactly true. Rather, Jordan tagged along with Peterson and Love to the course, and became interested in the game. However, Jordan’s interest at first was more like a Dean Smith “Four Corners Offense” than a patented Air Jordan slam dunk. Jordan would hang around the course driving golf carts and riding along with friends, before eventually trying a putt or a drive or two, and then eventually, the game for the first time. And now is addicted to the game.