Golf: Anirban Lahiri and Shiv Kapur ready for challenge at US Open

Close friends Anirban Lahiri and Shiv Kapur will present a rare occasion of two Indian golfers featuring at the same Major when they tee off at the US Open this week. It will only be the fourth time that two Indians will feature at the same Major in a year.

While Lahiri comes in as one of the top-50 ranked players of the world, Kapur, for the second year in running, came through a grueling 36-hole Qualifier.

There is an air of excitement for both Lahiri and Kapur.

While Lahiri will complete his 'set of Majors' as by the end of the week, he will have played in each of the four Majors and this will be his fourth Major in a row -- having played British Open and PGA last year also.

This year, Lahiri made his Masters debut and made the cut and not it is time for US Open. He will also become only the third Indian to play all four Majors after Jeev Milkha Singh and Arjun Atwal.

"The past year has been amazing. I got spots on two Majors last year and this year by getting into Top-50 I am into all of them and it is a heady feeling. Now the task of doing well. I felt I played well at Masters, too, and I am looking forward to the US Open," said Lahiri.

Both Lahiri and Kapur, who have played the British Open twice each, commented that the US Open this time at Chambers Bay has the feel of a 'Open' that is normally seen on the other side of the Atlantic.

Lahiri who has his coach Vijay Divecha with him in Washington, said, "The golf is quite unique. It rather hilly and also very long. The undulating greens and small target areas make for a great challenge. The set-up is also somewhat like an Open championship setup with the feel of a Links-style golf course." 

For Kapur, who shares a sponsor with Lahiri in Hero, who are also present on the US PGA Tour, it is a second US Open in succession. In fact Kapur has earned the reputation of being a fine player at the qualifiers. His two appearances at the British Open (2006 and 2013) also came through qualifiers and last year also he made the US Open through qualifiers.

"It feels good to battle it out for two rounds in a single day and make it, but I feel it is time I made it as a matter of right by good and consistent play," he said.

"The Chambers (Bay) is built on a hillside and is a Links-style course. This time, more than ever, the US Open feels more like an Open -- and that's the general consensus among the players here," Kapur added.

In terms of time zones, Chambers Bay, close to Seattle, Washington State is 12 and a half hours behind Indian Standard Time. And as usual, the die-hard golf followers will start their spectating on TV Thursday evening onwards.

Lahiri, who reached a career-high 34th, is now No. 45 and he will tee up with Americans Ryan Moore and Erik Compton on the first two days. Lahiri will tee off at 1450 local time, by which time it will early hours on Friday in India.

Kapur, playing his second US Open, is paired with Americans Denny McCarthy and D A Points. He also has an after tee time, at 1311 hours, by which time it will be 1.40 am on Friday morning in India.