Euan Walker opens up on 'massive boost' ahead of tough Hero Indian Open test

The trio are in the field for the 59th edition of the Hero Indian Open, which gets underway at the notoriously-difficult DLF Golf & Country Club in New Delhi on Thursday.

In truth, it’s a test that Walker probably wouldn’t have fancied after making just one cut in six starts on the main tour since graduating from the HotelPlanner Tour at the end of last season.

Now, though, the 30-year-old is heading into the $2.55 million event with a spring in his step after finishing joint-sixth behind American Jordan Gumberg in the Hainan Classic in China on Sunday.

The effort catapulted him up the Race to Dubai Rankings and, all of a sudden, Walker is believing that he has the game to hold his own at the top level after chiselling away at the coalface on the second-tier tour over the last few years.

“Yeah, it’s done quite a lot as I wasn’t really going that well until that point, although I have been playing some nice golf,” he admitted of his performance at Mission Hills Resort on Hainan Island.

“I missed a few of the big events at the start of the year, including not getting into the Desert Classic, so I needed a big performance like that to actually be in contention at all in the Race to Dubai.

‘It is good to know that I can do it’

“It’s been a massive boost to the season. It has given me that confidence that my game is good enough. I’d never had a top ten on the DP World Tour and that was my 24th start, so, yeah, it is good to know that I can do it.”

Bhatia, who is sponsored by Hero, is the star attraction in this week’s event after landing the biggest win of his career so far in the Arnold Palmer Invitational - one of the PGA Tour’s Signature Events - at Bay Hill earlier this month.

“I’m very excited to be here in India,” said the world No 22. “This was supposed to happen in 2020. Obviously Covid happened and the trip didn't happen, but I’m happy to be here now for the first time. The golf course looks very difficult from what I've seen and I’m just really looking forward to being here and exploring some of Delhi.”

The 24-year-old is of Indian heritage and added: “To play here has always been something I have wanted to do. It’s a place that obviously means a lot to us as a family.

“As a professional athlete on the PGA Tour we play so much in the States, but anytime we do get to travel it’s amazing. I played the Hero Dubai Desert Classic in Dubai last year, which was amazing, and I’ve been to a couple of really cool places as a kid.

“ But I haven't gotten to explore too much since I've turned professional, so it’s definitely cool to explore the world and especially at a young age it's a blessing for sure.”

In an event won by Stephen Gallacher at the same venue in 2019, Walker is flying the Saltire along with Grant Forrest, Calum Hill, Ewen Ferguson, David Law, Daniel Young and Cameron Adam.