Golf stagnates in West, grows in India, China

It's the Indian Open week and you can be sure a lot of top CEOs are coming down to Delhi to play some serious golf. It's fascinating to see how much interest there is in this mind-sport among executives in Ahmedabad, Chennai, Pune, Bangalore and other cities outside of hubs like Delhi and Mumbai. A lot of the top corporate golfers from the region are spending the Indian Open week meeting up with players and getting access to the Indian Open, which is now a European Tour event and the India Golf Awards, which are the key awards for the sport in the country. All this with some of the most stellar talent in the field like Anirban Lahiri from India and Spain's Miguel Jimenez.

There's this old, now funny saying that it's a rich man's game. How much that has changed. It is a very exciting time for golf in India. It is one of the fastest growing sports in the country as the economy picks up, new tournaments are added to the calendar which opens up access to players many of who come from a caddie background. In 2014 at least five of the key tournaments in India and Asia were led by caddies who grew up playing on the course. Thanks to the Indian Open which is now tri-sanctioned between European and Asian Tours. I can't say this with more passion during a cricket season – that more people will be following and playing golf than ever before.

Apart from the addition of the awards to the golfing scene, there has also been a rise in the number of tournaments held across the country. What's adding to the interest around the sport is the number of golf courses coming around the country, led by the state of Gujarat for example. Two young men Brijesh Paten and Siddharth Naik played an 182 holes in a single day from sunrise to sunset in the stroke play format. Bhadresh Shah of AIA Engineering is a well-known golfer from the state. Turn back time to his CM days, even the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, was seen putting a few shots. This kind of golf-interest is spreading across metros and mini metros. Jamshedpur, Bengaluru and Chandigarh are nurseries for some stellar young golfers.

In the last couple of years it has also been noted that golf has stagnated in America and Europe, with India and China being hailed as the fastest growing countries for the sport. In fact, Scottish golf legend Colin Montgomerie who was in New Delhi recently was clear in saying that the future of the sport lies in Asia. Montgomerie said, "It would be great to see an Indian champion, a real world champion." Arnold Palmer, who is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men's professional golf too said the next few years will see the rise of Indian and Chinese golfers in a big way.

The time is perfect for the game of golf to grow. And grow well. A big of corporate support, plenty of good global players in the field and a young icon like Anirban Lahiri to follow – 2015 should be considered the high noon for the sport. And as they say in golf, one mustn't lose a good opportunity.