Long list of DP World Tour winners to vie for record purse at Hero Indian Open

HEADING: Long list of DP World Tour winners to vie for record purse at Hero Indian Open

INTRO: The 57th edition of the Hero Indian Open has drawn a field of 144 that includes as many as 18 current and past winners from the DP World (European) Tour.

CAPTION: File photo of Italy’s Matteo Manassero, who will be one of the major draws at next week’s Hero Indian Open. Image courtesy DP World Tour.

Rahul Banerji

SUMMARY

· Hero Indian Open 2024 has drawn as many as 18 DP World (European) Tour winners, two from the current season, seven from last year and nine from 2022

· Matteo Manassero, one of the brightest stars of a generation ago and now on the comeback trail will be amongst the stellar attractions at the March 28 to 31 event.

· Indian challenge will be headlined by 2015 champion Anirban Lahiri and former DP World Tour Rookie of the Year Shubhankar Sharma.

A long line-up of winners from the DP World Tour and international stars will be seen in action at the $2.25 million Hero Indian Open 2024 that gets under way at the DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurgaon next week including the revitalised Matteo Manassero of Italy, Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard, former champion Anirban Lahiri and past tour Rookie of the Year Shubhankar Sharma.

Manassero was once counted as one of the brightest stars in the sport and burst on the global stage as the youngest-ever DPWT winner back in 2010. He would rack up three more wins in the next three years and climbing as high as 25th in the world rankings before losing his way and almost disappearing from sight.

Having worked his way since then via the subsidiary Alps Tour and Challenge Tour, Manassero announced his return earlier this year with victory at the Jonsson Workwear Open in South Africa, his fifth European tour title and the first in almost 10 years after winning his first as a 17-year-old.

The 31-year-old birdied his final four holes at the Glendower Golf Club in Edenvale to register his fifth tour win and the first since the BMW Players Championship in 2013 to cap a fairytale comeback and one that was one of the most widely-welcomed titles in recent months.

Joining Manassero at the 57th edition of the Hero Indian Open will be former Ryder Cup star Nicolas Colsaerts, and 2023 winners Todd Clements (D+D Real Czech Masters), Daniel Gavins (Ras Al Khaimah), Matthew Baldwin (SDC Championships) and Dale Whitnell (Scandinavian Masters) all from England, Daniel Hillier (British Masters) of New Zealand, and Swede Simon Forsstrom (Soudal Open in Belgium).

The list of titleists from 2022 include England’s Matthew Jordan (Portugal), 2023 Indian Open runner-up Yannik Paul of Germany (Mallorca), Guido Migliozzi of Italy, Max Keiffer of Germany, Callum Shinkwin of England, Spaniard Adri Arnaus, Scotsman Ewen Ferguson, China’s Wu Ashun and Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat.

Also expected is rising New Zealand star, Kazumi Kobori, who at 22, has already picked up four wins on the PGA Tour of Australasia, three of which have come this year.

Besides being a flagship regional event, the Hero Indian Open is now the second leg of the DP World Tour’s Asian Swing after this week’s Porsche Singapore Open that will be played at the Laguna National Golf Resort and has attracted a field of 144 with the winner walking away with a $382,500