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Indian golfer Arin Ahuja, who is about to start his journey as a professional, spoke about following in the footsteps of Indian stars such as Shubhankar Sharma, Anirban Lahiri, Khalin Josh and Angad Cheema and how his father made him fall in love with the sport.
Aged 22, Arin is one of India's most promising young golfers. A junior-level title winner, Arin achieved the distinction of being ranked India's number two on the amateur circuit in 2024. With consistent performances on the amateur circuit over the past three years, Arin has continued to strengthen his credentials. Demonstrating composure and strong finishing ability, he recently won the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) Qualifying School 202627 by a one-shot margin, earning a full playing card for the professional tour. Reflecting on his golfing journey, Arin said that he has been playing golf since he was seven years old. His father, a golf secretary at US Golf Club, would take him to the golf course, and those visits made him fall in love with the sport. "I started golf when I was seven years old in 2011 back in Mumbai. My dad was the golf secretary there at the US Golf Club, and he just used to take me along with him in the afternoons. That is how I began my golf journey. And yeah, I have fallen in love with the game ever since. I have been playing continuously ever since, and yeah, I have been fortunate enough to go around the country. Play various courses, play tournaments in them and been able to grow my game," he said. On the challenges he is anticipating while transitioning from amateur to professional level, he said that he needs to become better at his game, become "more religious and deliberate" about his practice. Arin looks upto international golf icons, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. "As for the Indians, Shubhankar and Anirban, like they paved the road for us, and now a lot of players like him are doing that, like Angad sir and Khalin sir doing that. I look forward to them, and I aspire to follow in their footsteps," he added. On the growth of Indian golf over the years through PGTI and the body's president, Kapil Dev, he said that the players have international-level amenities, prize purses have increased, and competition has got better. "With the enthusiasm that Kapil Sir has shown in growing PGTI, it has honestly been so good. Great for the players; now the prize purses have increased. Players now have all the amenities that all the foreign tours used to have. And it's all thanks to him, bringing in all the sponsors and growing the game," he said. "The competition is tighter, we now have coverage of golf and the sports players' lounges everywhere that you go, where you can, you know, warm up before a round, and yeah, just get your basic stuff in, which is very important for a player," he added. Lastly, on India's Asian Games 2026 campaign in golf, which brought the country two medals, including a historic individual gold for Pranavi Urs, he said, "Anytime any of our fellow Indians perform well on the global stage, it is great for all of us and we just aspire to follow in their footsteps." (ANI)
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