so when i went to the world congress, it was a very, very significant move. simi mehra, who you know so well, i mean, was the first indian women s professional. and from there, your idea also of women s pro golf in india happened. so can you just tell us how that correlation happened between the two? you know, simi became a professional golfer, no doubt, and possibly in the hardest, the toughest times of her life. it was heartbreaking for me, as the chairperson of national golf, to see that this young player wasn t being able to get sponsors, wasn t being able to make a career out of her life, out of her game. and finally, she took that bold step. it was not easy for her, because she didn t have sponsors. she managed to go to the us. she went to the, you know, she went through to the lpga, which was remarkable for her in those days. and she made a good breakthrough for herself,
so when i went to the world congress, it was a very, very significant move. simi mehra, who you know so well, i mean, was the first indian women s professional. and from there, your idea also of women s pro golf in india happened. so can you just tell us how that correlation happened between the two? you know, simi became a professional golfer, no doubt, and possibly in the hardest, the toughest times of her life. it was heartbreaking for me, as the chairperson of national golf, to see that this young player wasn t being able to get sponsors, wasn t being able to make a career out of her life, out of her game. and finally, she took that bold step. it was not easy for her, because she didn t have sponsors. she managed to go to the us. she went to the, you know,
women s professional. and from there, your idea also of women s pro golf in india happened. so can you just tell us how that correlation happened between the two? you know, smriti became a professional golfer, no doubt, and possibly in the hardest, the toughest times of her life. it was heartbreaking for me, as the chairperson of national golf, to see that this young player wasn t being able to get sponsors, wasn t being able to make a career out of her life, out of her game. and finally, she took that bold step. it was not easy for her, because she didn t have sponsors. she managed to go to the us. she went to the, you know, she went through to the lpga, which was remarkable for her in those days. and she made a good breakthrough for herself, through her hard work.
by the lpga, injune, 200a. now, when i went there, the lpga were very kind. they hosted me and they called me there the speaker. i told them, i said, you know, we don t have golf. we don t have golf, professional golf in india. we don t have a fan base. we don t have a fan base for this game. and so, the vice president at that time a lady called karen durkin she told me, what would you like? so i said, i would like to start professional golf, because i ve seen my young players play for national pride. and when they come back, theyjust hang up their boots and they have no direction. it was very difficult to convince young golfers to come into the game without a career prospect. so when i went to the world congress, it was a very, very significant move. smriti mehra, who you know so well, i mean, was the first indian
the way i got into golf. certainly, in the ladies game, the focus was on the social side. in the late 80s, women s golf was predominantly an amateur sport. there were hardly any professionals, if at all. how did the thought of having pro golf for women come into your mind? how did that idea happen? so, i saw a lot of youngsters, you know, they used to play for national pride, all of us do. i used to miss something. and i said that, you know, why can t we go beyond just amateur golf? i was appointed as almost the youngest chairperson of women s national golf. that was the turning point, because i came at a time when i saw a lot of golf which was old and traditional, and i was determined to change the mindset, to make sure that the game has more continuity. and then, there was an invitation to go to the world congress of women s golf, which was hosted