Bern, Aug 22 (IANS): India’s Anirban Lahiri could strengthen his position on the Asian Tour Order of Merit when the Omega European Masters returns to the scenic Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club from Sep 4-7.
The Omega European Masters, which is set against the picturesque backdrop of the Swiss Alps, has always been highly rated amongst the players and will launch the second half of the Asian Tour’s 2014 season.
The 27-year-old Indian currently leads the Asian Tour’s Merit rankings after a standout performance during the first half of the season where he posted three top-10s and a memorable win in Indonesia in April.
It was Lahiri’s fourth win on the region’s premier Tour but more importantly, his first outside of India.
Without missing a single cut in six appearances on the Asian Tour, Lahiri also broke inside the top-100 on the Official World Golf Ranking where he enjoyed his career-best of 65th place in May.
It has been a phenomenal rise as the Indian was ranked a lowly 1,381 after his rookie season in 2008.
Having been honoured at home with the prestigious Arjuna Award, which is the second highest sporting honour in India, the stars are looking bright for the newly-wed Lahiri, who was also part of Team Asia who tied with Team Europe in the inaugural EurAsia Cup presented by DRB-HICOM which was played in Malaysia in March.
“My career graph has been on the upper trend but it’s been bumpy. But the last 18 months has been tremendous, not just in terms of where my career has gone but also in terms of learning and growth and also coming of age as a person and professional,” said Lahiri.
Lahiri set the scene alight last year when he grabbed the opening round lead with a sensational 63.
While his challenge fizzled out in the next three rounds after posting scores of 71, 75 and 75 to finish in a share of 57th place, much is expected of the Indian this year with his growing reputation behind him.
"It was a lot of hard work and dedication. I’ve taken small steps to get to where I’m today. The Asian Tour Order of Merit is one of the few goals that I have set for myself this season and I’ve put myself in a good position at this stage,” said Lahiri.
The Omega European Masters is the only event to be jointly sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour on European soil and it will be headlined by charismatic Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez, the European Tour’s oldest winner and holder of 21 titles including his win in Switzerland in 2010.
Italian Matteo Manassero and French star Victor Dubuisson will also feature in the Swiss showpiece.