Par For THE COURSE

For most of its history in the subcontinent, golf has been played behind closed gates. Following one national champion's legacy to bring the sport to the common man, we take a look at what holds India back from global golfing prowess, and how the caddies of yesterday became the champions (and champion-makers) of tomorrow

- Sharan Sanil

"You know he's the one who taught me how to swing, back in the eighties?"

Three men pull down their caps, hoist their putters and summon their caddies-it's past lunchtime at the sixth hole of Delhi Golf Club's flagship 18-hole Lodhi Course as the sunshine pelts hard on their backs. Chipping in his second birdie of the day, cricket pundit and ex-world champion Kapil Dev-often spotted on golf courses these days-sets off for the next hole alongside friend and golfing entrepreneur Ateet Gaur. Both men have played golf across the world for the better part of three decades; though the man watching them tread across the greens has a much more personal, purposeful relationship to the game, its future, and most certainly its past.

"The whole revolution with [modern] golf started around 25 years ago, with Tiger Woods," says golfer and philanthropist Amit Luthra. "Guy was a one-man army; everyone following the black man, whites behind him. He started a revolution; now even villagers know his name." Famed for his '82 Asian Games win that marked India's first big step forward in golf, Luthra's home in Delhi is littered with silverware from decades of competitive play; though his true legacy is more visible during his 15th Invitational Fundraiser Tournament-a philanthropic effort that has jumpstarted the careers of several young golfers, many of whom may have never seen a green without Luthra's The Golf Foundation (TGF). You can spot it in the calm, passionate way in which Luthra guides young players invited to the course that afternoon; but for golfing to come all the way here, there was a lot that needed to be done.

State of Play