The poison is out of the system

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The one-time big hope of Indian golf, his potential underlined by his Asian Tour win in 2005, Shiv Kapur’s fortunes have since dipped as far as trophy count goes. The 30-year-old Delhi golfer belie-ves his time will come.

Excerpts from an interview.

Disappointment in not converting good starts into title finishes: Absolutely. You play sport to win and I’m frustrated that I haven’t been able to live up to my own expectations. Any time you start off your career on a high, it’s always difficult to match that standard.

European Tour experience: If I was to look at it objectively from where I started and how I was, playing six years on the European tour, coming close on a few occasions, I have outdone myself sometimes. I didn’t expect to be on the European Tour in the second year itself and I have managed to keep my card for five solid seasons
The season so far: Last year was a bit of a lean patch. I played well after August and have been consistently on the leader boards. I haven’t scored over par in two months. That’s a good sign. I would have liked to achieve more, the next 4-5 years is when I expect to hit my prime.

Issues with anxiety: Whe-never you get a sniff at victory you try and push too hard, don’t stay as patient as you should. I’m glad that I have had some of my bad golf out of the way. Maybe the poison is out of the system. Patience is something I have struggled with in the past. But today I do well in that department too.

Next season, European or Asian Tour?: I would like to play a bit more in Asia. I have been traveling a lot in the last 4-5 years and it is getting to me. If I play well there and get the card back for Europe, I will end up playing in Europe. It’s just hard to give up playing on higher tours. Unlike in the past, I am not losing sleep over it. If I get the card well enough, else I will play in Asia.