GURUGRAM: Following the success of its first year’s programme, the US Kids Golf India Tour 2019 rolls out with its opening event being played at the Jack Nicklaus-designed Classic Golf and Country Club near here on Wednesday.
Building on the 2018 season, US Kids India will operate two tours concurrently, one for the North Zone that will include Kolkata and Ahmedabad besides Delhi NCR, and a second for the South Zone that will be played across Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune.
US Kids Golf is recognized as the world’s leader in youth golf, dedicated to helping young players enjoy golf through better equipment, scientifically-designed tournament play with age-appropriate yardages, and new learning and coaching resources.
“This year, we divided the country into two zones keeping West Bengal and Gujarat in the North and the rest in the South,” tournament director Romit Bose said. “After last year’s strong response, the idea was to broaden the footprint of the US Kids India Tour significantly keeping in mind the two major centers of the game in India – Delhi and Bengaluru.
“This will also reduce travel for the kids by bringing our tournaments closer,” he added.
Accordingly, tournaments in the North will be played at Classic GCC, Jaypee Greens in Greater Noida, Golden Greens Colf Club (Gurugram), Kalhaar Blues and Greens in Ahmedabad and the Tollygunje Club in Kolkata. The season-ending Tour Championship will also be at the Classic GCC.
The South leg will see tournaments played at Golden Greens in Hosur near Bengaluru, Hyderabad’s Boulder Hills Golf and Country Club, Eagleton the Golf Resort (Bengaluru) and the Poona Club Golf Course in Pune with the Tour Championship at the Engleton course.
The US Kids Golf India Tour 2019 edition will be played across various age groups for boys, starting from age 6 and under till 18, as well as girls, from age 7 and under till 18.
Like last season, the US Kids Golf India Tour will carry ranking points, and with participation in a minimum of four events out of the eight, junior golfers will be able to gain qualification for the US Kids World Championship, US Kids European Championships as well as US Kids Teen World Championship.
On Wednesday, 73 young golfers participating in 14 age categories will teed off the season, hoping to emulate the successes of the 2018-19 Tour that saw as many as 32 players in various age-groups qualifying for further competitions under the global banner of the US Kids Golf from 13 age groups – eight among boys and five among girls.
Rajesh Srivastava, president, US Kids Golf India said: “After a successful first season, and with golf now being a part of the Olympics and the Asian Games, we are focussed on the right way of developing junior golf in India. With this initiative, we have put forward a scientific approach to the development of junior golf in the right environment with age-specific equipment and yardages to ensure that our kids grow their game while enjoying the sport and also remain free from injury and fatigue.
“One of the major focus areas has been the certification of junior golf coaches and caddies, who are the first point of contact between a junior golfer and the game, as per US Kids Golf global norms and standards.
“Our vision is to promote junior golf in the country and take the game to masses, just like the journey of cricket in India and how it became the most loved sport from being an exclusive sport in its early days.”
Full list of tournaments
Fall 2019 (North) schedule:
May 8: Classic Golf and Country Club, Manesar
June 13: Jaypee Greens, Greater Noida
August 17: Kalhaar Blues and Greens, Ahmedabad
October 3: Tollygunje Club, Kolkata
November 1: Classic Golf and Country Club, Manesar
November 15: Golden Greens Golf Club, Gurgaon
December 10: Classic Golf and Country Club, Manesar
December 13: Classic Golf and Country Club, Manesar (Tour Championship).
Fall 2019 (South) schedule:
May 18: Clover Greens, Hosur
June 8: Boulder Hills GCC, Hyderabad
August 9: Eagleton The Golf Resort, Bengaluru
September 4: Clover Greens, Hosur
November 20: Poona Club Golf Course
November 22: Poona Club Golf Course
December 16: Eagleton The Golf Resort, Bengaluru
December 18: Eagleton The Golf Resort, Bangalore (Tour Championship).
