When weather spiced up Chettinad and MAM Muthiah Cup

CHENNAI: IN golf, the weather is everything. Whenever someone says that the Madras weather is hot, hotter and hottest, the city golfer can only shake his head, muttering, ‘Poor thing, has never played golf here’. Rightly so as only those who have experienced the impact the vagaries of Chennai weather do to their game and scores, know how wickedly nuanced the city’s weather can be.

Normally, Chennai is hotter in June than in May, which was not the case this year, thanks to unexpected showers. Regular golfers, used to the ball running on bone dry fairways in summer, were caught unawares by the unseasonal rain, which also impacted their scores. Agni Natchathiram, the period of traditionally hot afternoons, was a breeze for many golfers teeing off at both the MGC and the TNGF. However, on some days, the air was heavy and nothing stirred. Even the crows appeared to be too lazy to steal the ball from the fairways. On such days, the greens would be fast, too fast, so one had to chip in fairly close to the hole, aiming for a single putt.

Then the rain decided to do another jig or two over the city, and many golfers had to accept that between mid-June and late-July. There was a deterioration in their scores and their handicaps were rising like retail prices.

Overnight transformation

The course had begun to play long already and the greens were changing in character overnight – even between a Saturday afternoon and a Sunday morning. This challenge of the ball failing to run extra yards after flight and the greens slowing down due to an overnight drizzle was what 52 players were up against, when they teed off for the MAM Muthiah Cup and the Chettinad Cup, held concurrently on July 23 and July 24 at the Madras Gymkhana Club (MGC) annexe in Guindy. The Muthiah Cup was an Open event while the Chettinad Cup had a handicap play format.

At 5:40 am on day 1, the scene was fairly dramatic as it was still raining. However, the players teed off at 6 am and as if on cue, the rain stopped soon. Those familiar with the Gym links will know that the course turns green swiftly after a few showers. It was a pleasant sight but a transformed course that greeted the golfers.

On day 2, the course was soft, thanks to the overnight rain. The organisers amped the challenge by pushing the tees back and keeping the pin positions at interesting angles. Further, the greens speed was set at 8.5, testing the putting skill of the golfers. The Hole 11 pin in particular drew a number of snarky comments, with one golfer terming the slope on the green ‘brutal’. The drive on par 3 Hole 11 is in itself a challenge, given the tough OB (Out of Bounds) areas. And with the tricky pin position, one had to plan precisely where to land the drive. A few golfers did and bagged a birdie on that hole.

For those who had already missed being on top of the leaderboard, the interest lay in watching the keen contest between Darshan Veeraraghavan, Nikhill Cherian and Pranav Nandakumar. Veeraraghavan was back on the course after a seven-week lay-off due to an injury. Nandakumar, the teenage sensation, was leading by a stroke at four over, when play began on day 2. After the first four holes, Veeraraghavan was three shots behind both Cherian and Nandakumar. However, Veeraraghavan proved experience counts, when he held his nerve and played even par for the next 14 holes. The other two dropped a number of shots and Veeraraghavan, who defended his Muthiah Cup title, was a happy man at the end. “Guindy is best when it rains. Although it plays much longer, it is far easier to score when it is soft and there are no unfair bounces,” said Veeraraghavan.

Clearly, ones who play the long and short game under any condition know how to convert well.