Interview with Panasonic Golf Open winner Mukesh Kumar: "Greatest moment of my 32-year career"

Mukesh Kumar Panasonic Open.jpg
Mukesh Kumar showed us that age is nothing but a number

51-year old Mukesh Kumar became the oldest person to win a tournament on the Asian Tour after clinching a nerve-wracking one-stroke victory at the Panasonic Open on Sunday. The competition, held at the picturesque Delhi Golf Club course, was Kumar’s first ever title on the continental circuit and a remarkable 123rd overall.

The veteran shrugged off some stiff competition towards the end from fellow Indians Jyoti Randhawa and Rashid Khan, finishing at a score of 10 under par with three birdies and one bogey in the final round. He won wire-to-wire, as he led the standings at the end of all three rounds, with the tournament being cut short a day following multiple delays due to fog.

He spoke at length with the press after his victory, explaining what was going through his mind while making the final putt. Here are a few excerpts!

Q – What does this win mean to you?

A – This victory is very important and dear to me. I have been a professional for 32 years now and now that I’ve finally won my first international title, I am extremely happy. I am used to getting a lot of ribbing from my colleagues due to my absence of silverware outside the Indian Tour and I’m glad I’ve been able to shut them up after all these years. (laughs)

Q – What was going through your mind today while playing the final round?

A – I was focused on my game and tried to block out any negative thoughts. Midway through the round, I got to know that Jyoti (Randhawa) has caught up with me and that we are tied for first place, which made me feel slightly tense. I tried to concentrate solely on my play and once I made the birdie on the 15th hole with a 20-foot putt, I regained my full confidence and was able to close out the remaining three holes comfortably.

Q – Were you expecting yourself to win the tournament four days back?

A – To be honest, I didn’t expect to win. I just tried to be confident and play the best golf I can. Once I got to the top of the leaderboard, I felt better about my chances. On the Indian tour, it is very difficult to dislodge me once I start leading and I tried to apply that here as well. I saw other Indian players around me play well and that drove me to do well too!

Q - When did you start looking at the scoreboard today?

A - I tried to keep myself from looking at how the other players are doing and focus on my golf today. But the suspense became too much for me on the 17th hole and I just had to look at where Jyoti was. Thankfully, he could only card a par on the final hole and so I knew that I had to just do the same as well without taking any risks.

Q - Describe your thought process while approaching the final hole.

A - I had a bad tee-off on the 18th and was shocked for a moment but I managed to save the situation with my 6-iron approach shot. I just tried to be patient and get the job done as clinically as possible. I had two putts on the final green to wrap up the title and I wanted to avoid any unnecessary mistakes. I took my time and got the par score I wanted.

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Edited by Staff Editor