At the Kensville Golf Academy in Ahmedabad, scores of teenagers and their mothers practicing their swing during summer holidays, symbolises the popularity of golf as a family sport in the city. “The growth of golfing in Ahmedabad is heartening, considering there was only one course in the city in the army cantonment till 2004-05,” enthuses Sameer Sinha, managing director of Kensville Golf & Country Club, elaborating, “In the last few years, the 18-hole Kensville Golf Course an hour from Ahmedabad, the nine-hole Gulmohar Green Golf and Country Club about 20 minutes drive, and the nine-hole course of Cambay Club at Gandhinagar nearby, transformed the golf scene in the city.”
“Gulmohar and Cambay even started a driving range and coaching facilities which helped newbies get started.” He added, “As our clubs were too far from Ahmedabad for regular classes, we started the three-tier, 36 bay golf academy within the city. Today, from about 100 people with experience of golf in Ahmedabad, there are about 2,000 who can play the sport, of which 500-600 are regulars at one of the three courses.”
Says Alpesh Parikh who heads Gulmohar Greens Golf and Country Club, “Once clubs were operational, golf became a subject of conversation at parties and social dos. It became prestigious to be a golfer. Many families became members of the clubs, or bought houses in golf complexes. Today, there are entire families playing golf.” With increasing exposure to the game, and the incentive of golf as a great networking opportunity with high net-worth individuals (HNI) and government officials—many families have started sending their children for golf lessons. With them, many mothers get interested and have started learning the game. In tournaments at Cambay, Gulmohar and Kensville, 10-12 women out of 40-50 contestants, is now par for the course. Golfers have even formed The Ahmedabad Elite Golfers Association, which organises tournaments that receive good support from corporate houses and luxury car brands. Says Sinha, “We believe women’s golf is ripe for exponential growth in India, specially in states like Gujarat, with many women entrepreneurs and execs. Korea, Iran and other Asian countries are doing well in women’s golf. We hosted the Western India Ladies Open Amateur Golf Championship in 2008 and an All- India Ladies Open Golf Tournament in 2010, which provided much-needed boost to women’s golf in Gujarat. The likes of Rupal Patel, Manisha Shodhan- Basu, Neha Sheth and Monisha Desai participated in the events and gave much-needed exposure to the game at the upper echelons.” Cameron Venter, a pro at Kensville Golf Academy, sees golf becoming an inherent part of Ahmedabad’s lifestyle. “The academies are bringing younger people into the game, including teenagers, and I see more and more women taking to the sport with family. While golfing is at a nascent stage in Ahmedabad compared to other parts of India, I see it picking up because it is exciting, challenging and enjoyable.