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Debayan Bhattacharyya
Sub Editor at India.com. A dedicated sports writer. ... Read More
New Delhi: 17-year old teenage sensation Krishnav Chopra is a rising star in Indian Golf and is currently ranked 2nd in India at the Junior division. Krishnav is the son of former India cricketer Nikhil Chopra, presently a cricket expert and commentator in the Indian Premier League. A school student in California, Krishnav is a straight-forward confident man with lots of high hopes and ambitions as he sets his sight to be the No. 1 Indian golfer in the world. His dreams doesn’t stop here as he also wants to script history and become the first ever Indian golfer to claim victory on a PGA Tour. In his career so far he has won the Amateur Links Championship, 4th RBG Champions World Series of North 2020-21 title and the AJGA American Junior Golf Association Championships. Recently he finished 10th in the prestigious Dustin Johnson World Junior Golf Championship and also finished runners-up both in the IGU All India Junior Championship and Eastern India Juniors. In an exclusive chat with india.com, Krishnav opens up on his experience in the junior and pro tournaments, his relationship with Indian Pro golfer and Asian Games gold medallist Shiv Kapur, his dad being his ultimate idol and also his future goals. Here are the excerpts from the interview:-
1) Your father is a former India International cricketer, who was part of the 1999 World Cup squad. So what made you choose Golf over Cricket ?
I think I chose Golf over Cricket for one reason that to be more outdoor and play an individual sport. Golf over the years has made me a matured person and taught me a lot and being a 17-year old I have a mindset of a 40-year old or maybe of a 50-year old. I see everything in a different way. Cricket has it’s own advantages and Golf has it’s own but I have played every sport. My father introduced me to every sport, whether it’s basketball or volleyball, squash, tennis. I always liked to play outdoors. I sometimes play cricket at home with my father.
2) Who has been your idol growing up ?
To be honest, everybody will say Tiger Woods or Rory Mcllroy but for me it’s my father. I look up to my father and I look up to his surname. What he has achieved for cricket, I want to achieve the same in Golf. I want to be the first Indian to win on the PGA Tour. My main aim is to win the PGA Tour and be the No. 1 Indian golfer in the world. I was the first Indian to win the AJGA American Junior Golf Association Championships. It’s a long step but slowly and surely I am going to reach that.
3) You finished 10th in the recently concluded Dustin Johnson World Junior Golf Championship. How was the experience ?
It was a great experience as top 60 people from the world get invited for the tournament and I was representing India. I had the opportunity to meet Dustin Johnson over there. He was visiting us on the practice round day. You know Dustin Johnson being the No. 1 in the world has given back a lot to the game. The tournament was very well organized. They provided us with all the amenities like you see in a professional tournament–which includes proper locker room, proper food. They gave you a pair of goody bags, shoes and even clothes. In a normal junior tournament you neither do you have your name on the back of your shirt nor you have your flag. Being an Indian with the Indian flag behind me, it gave me a patriotic feeling. You are not only representing yourself but your country too. It was a great feeling and was very well organized and I look forward to many such tournaments.
4) You played so far two professional tournaments in Pune Open Golf Championship and Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational. What are the takeaways from the tournament ?
Well I have played the Professional Golf Tour of India. I was invited as an amateur due to my national ranking being 2nd. It was a great tournament playing the Pune Open. I had a hole-in-one on the last day. I was the first amateur to have a hole-in-one. There is not a big difference comparing a professional golfer to a junior golfer. It is just the consistency. The tournament gave me more determination and hard work in my practice that you look up to it. I had a good finish as I came tied 26th in that tournament. I have learnt a lot from that and would like to thank the PGTI for giving us amateurs, spots to play and take the game forward.
5) You attained 2nd Rank in India in the Junior category. How was the feeling like ?
Unfortunately I missed being No. 1 by a point. It’s a little sad. It’s good you know being able to play 6 tournaments last year in which I didn’t perform in two. In the last four tournaments I came in podium finishes, finishing second but fell short by one shot or maybe two. During this time of Pandemic any sport has been tough, be it in the Olympics or in Golf. Golf hasn’t really been a major sport in our country but steadily and surely it will rise too. I want to thank the Indian Golf Union to conducting these Junior Golf tournaments and letting us represent our country within our country to better our national ranking.
6) Your favorite Indian Golfer ?
There are many actually. I look upto Shiv Kapur a lot. We play at the same home golf club, he’s a great friend of my father. Honestly he’s been a mentor to me, a father-figure. He has told me anything and everything of the game regarding the tricks and the trade. He taught me whatever he has done mistakes in his life that I shouldn’t do. He has taught me to go on a different path like don’t go with the result, think about all the hard work you are doing. There has been many highs and many lows and the highs has been very high and the lows are very low as well. He told to me to have the positivity in the body and think why are you doing it and what’s the reason to be on the golf course.
7) How do your prepare yourself for a tournament ? Do you have any pre match or in-game superstition ?
I don’t have any in-game superstition. I play with a specific number of balls, wearing the same gloves and I have a lucky t-shirt. But the thing is you still have to go out and struggle. You still have to put the ball in the fairway and finish the putt. But I don’t want to share all my details now. When I am done with the game, I’ll surely include that in a biography or an autobiography.
8) What’s a bigger dream for you ? Winning all four golfing majors or winning the Olympic Gold Medal ?
To be honest it would be the Olympic Gold Medal. But being the No. 1 Indian in the world and be the first Indian to win on a PGA Tour is something all Indians will be looking forward to.
9) What are your future goals ?
I am currently 17 years old and in the midst of deciding a college in the US. I am getting good offers, deciding on that will get a degree and in the first four years win the NCAA regional Championship for my college and then get into the professional tournaments in the US. My dream is to stay in the US and play here because the competition here is the toughest in the world. To be a part of the PGA Tour will be a very big achievement for me. I want to have a long career and stick to the PGA Tour. Whenever I go for a tournament, our National anthem gives me the buzz. Many people listen to music but the National anthem gives me the kick and the drive to play for the country rather than playing for myself. So it’s a very good feeling.
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