Golf in India

[Mark_Rowlinson]

India is a huge country. It has, in Royal Calcutta, a very old golf club. It has a lot of golfers. Which courses, if any, are worth playing?

[Kalen Braley]

I played Eagleton years ago on the outskirts of Bangalore. 


The course is no more than a Doak 3-3.5, but had a few interesting holes, including one with a massive Banyon type tree that blocked most of the green on a short par 4.


Can't say its worth a play unless you're a golf junkie.  The most interesting part was the old clubhouse that looked to be built during the British occupation period.  Come to think of it that was the most interesting part of the entire trip, the old structures, including one temple I visited that was reportedly ~800 years old

[Mike_Clayton]

Mark,


Royal Delhi is worth seeing - as is Calcutta. I haven't played either since the mid-80s but I think Calcutta is one of the oldest courses in the world outside of the UK. Maybe the oldest.
The course they are playing on the European Tour this week is 'controversial' to say the least.

[Adam Lawrence]

The Bangalore Golf Club dates from 1876, and is one of the oldest clubs outside the UK that is still on its original course (Royal Calcutta is much older but has changed site). It has eighteen holes, and was on 60 acres until it lost about 20 yards down one side because a new light rail system was being built.


It's terrifying, I have never seen a more dangerous golf course. Especially since it is full dawn to dusk, and every player has a caddie. That's a lot of people on a very small site!

[Tom_Doak]

Mark:


Interesting timing as I will embark on a two week golf trip across India and Sri Lanka at the end of March.  I've only seen Delhi Golf Club prior to this trip, which was flat and jungly off the fairways, but memorable for the two 1000-year-old temples on course.


The two areas I am most interested to see are the old hill towns where the Brits made tea plantations, including Shillong in the east and Ootacamund in the southwest, and the newer resort courses between Pune and Mumbai.  The courses at the foot of the mountains outside Srinagar also sounded interesting, but the State Department travel warnings about the Kashmir were a bit off-putting.   

[Duncan Cheslett]

  The courses at the foot of the mountains outside Srinagar also sounded interesting, but the State Department travel warnings about the Kashmir were a bit off-putting.   

Tom,


If you get the chance to visit Srinigar, take it. I didn't visit the golf courses, but the three weeks I spent in a houseboat on Dal Lake back in the 80s are one of my fondest memories.

https://www.tripsavvy.com/is-it-safe-to-travel-to-kashmir-4072041

[Steve Salmen]

Mark:


Interesting timing as I will embark on a two week golf trip across India and Sri Lanka at the end of March.  I've only seen Delhi Golf Club prior to this trip, which was flat and jungly off the fairways, but memorable for the two 1000-year-old temples on course.


The two areas I am most interested to see are the old hill towns where the Brits made tea plantations, including Shillong in the east and Ootacamund in the southwest, and the newer resort courses between Pune and Mumbai.  The courses at the foot of the mountains outside Srinagar also sounded interesting, but the State Department travel warnings about the Kashmir were a bit off-putting.   

I took my first ever golf lesson in Ootacamund in December of 1982. I was 10 or 11. I didn't take the game up for another 3-4 years.

[Dónal Ó Ceallaigh]

CNN Living Golf profiles India this month:
https://edition.cnn.com/videos/tv/2018/03/05/living-golf-03-08-18.cnn-creative-marketing

[Adam_Messix]

The CNN International Golf in India program is going to be televised this Thursday.  In watching the preview ads, there was one golf hole that looked fascinating and on interesting ground.  I am curious as to what course that is.

[Marty Bonnar]

Just wait until you get a look at DLF.


F.