Winds of change will never blow away Augusta tradition, says chairman

JEJU ISLAND, South Korea — India’s rising star Shubhankar Sharma is keen to maintain his push for a PGA TOUR card and a spot on the Presidents Cup’s International Team when he tees up at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES starting on Thursday. The young Indian finished T10 at the CIMB Classic in Malaysia last weekend after entering the final round as the joint third-round leader, but the disappointment was quickly forgotten when South African legend Ernie Els, who  is captain of the Presidents Cup’s International Team, invited him for a nine-hole practice round here on Tuesday. It brought back great memories for Sharma, who was hand-picked by Els to hit shots during a golf clinic in New Delhi in 2008. He is now fired up to launch another strong run in this week’s event, which is the only PGA TOUR tournament in South Korea. “We were just chatting a lot about his life on TOUR,â€� said Sharma of his day with Els. “He said he’s so happy that kids like me are coming up now and that the International Team is actually looking really strong. I think he’s a great captain and definitely we’ll have a great team together.â€� He recalled travelling to Delhi Golf Club to watch the Indian Masters and remembers vividly what Els, a four-time major winner, told him during the clinic.  “I traveled a long way just to get to Delhi,â€� said Sharma. “I walked with Ernie in the first round and I think after the second round was when he had his clinic. I was one of the lucky ones to go up to him and say hi and then obviously hit a few shots with his 9‑iron. There was like a 100-yard board on the range and I hit both my shots, landed right next to the board. The crowd was clapping and it was quite a good moment for me.  “There were two or three kids before me who tried to hit it and they couldn’t really connect. It was his club, it was like a heavy 9-iron, so just to hit those two shots was very special and that made my day.â€� “And then Ernie gave me his card, he signed his card and gave it to me and he said, ‘You’ll be a good player one day, just keep working hard.’ So we were talking about it yesterday, and it’s always nice when I remember that day.â€� Els, who has competed in eight Presidents Cups, believes Sharma will contend for a place on his International Team.  “I played with Shubhankar, who’s had an incredible year. He’s won a few times around the world in one year and he’s only 22 years old,â€� said the 49-year-old.   “I wasn’t familiar that he was right behind me when we were hitting balls and we were talking about it. Those kind of stories doesn’t normally happen. You watch your hero play and you want be like him. It’s not many times (that) it comes to fruition,â€� added Els. “I had the same situation with Gary Player where I asked him for his autograph when I was a kid and he doesn’t even remember. But it made such an impact in my life, and it’s amazing how it translates in your mind and changes your life. It’s amazing how you can touch lives without even knowing.â€� With countryman and close friend Anirban Lahiri having played the last two Presidents Cups, Sharma has made it a goal for him to get to Royal Melbourne. “The next Presidents Cup is going to be huge with Ernie and Tiger (Woods) being the captains,â€� he said. “The International Team could have pulled off a great win in Korea (in 2015). It definitely ranks in the top three (goals) with the majors and with the WGCs. Playing the Presidents Cup would be a huge honor.â€� “Anirban has done it, and if both of us can make the team, that will be the icing on the cake. Obviously we’ll have more fans back home in India. We have more than a billion people in India, and maybe a few percent will follow the Presidents Cup if we do make it. I think it will be great for our country and for golf back in Asia.â€� Sharma contended in Malaysia last weekend before slipping back with a closing 72. As he is in the field at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES and also in next week’s World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in Shanghai, both with no halfway cuts, he is hoping to take a big step towards earning his PGA TOUR card via the non-member FedExCup points category. “Only good things, positives to take away from last week,â€� said Sharma, who got into this week’s field as the highest ranked player from the Asian Tour. “It’s always good when you’re in contention at a PGA TOUR event and I’ve been lucky enough to be in contention twice this year, leading after three days in both the tournaments. So I just want to take positives. “A top‑10 finish is never bad on the PGA TOUR even though I would have liked to be slightly higher than that, but I just want to take positives out of last week. I feel like my game’s in a good spot and I have two more weeks, this week and next week as well, so (I’ll) try and do my best and we’ll see how it goes,â€� said Sharma who finished T9 at the WGC-Mexico Championship in February.

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