Shiv Kapur basks in stardom, still keeps focus

Hoylake, England, July 19 (UNI) US-based Arjun Atwal has been the inspiration for legion of Indian golfers but Shiv Kapur would like to emulate the original Arjun, of the Mahabharata, and keep his eyes fixed solely on the target -- the ball with 330 dimples -- when he tees off in the British Open tomorrow.

Making his maiden major appearance here at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Shiv Kapur is enjoying every bit of the stardom but the exciting Indian talent is not ready to allow the hype affect his show over the remainder of the week.

''It's great being here. The whole town is buzzing with the Open.

People make you feel like you're a movie celebrity and all the kids want your autograph, which is good. But after a while, you need to keep your eye on the game. I think this is all part of being here and it's awesome,'' he said.

''I have watched The Open all my life on TV and I don't think I will realise what it is all about until I step onto the first tee on Thursday. Even during the practice rounds, the atmosphere here is great but I think the real deal only comes on Thursday, Friday and through the weekend. I think experiencing that will be magic,'' added the 24-year-old, who had a meteoric rise on the Asian Tour since turning professional 18 months ago.

After joining the Asian Tour last year, Kapur has emerged as one of the brightest talents, winning the season-ending Volvo Masters of Asia in Thailand and this year, he notched up three top-15s and has impressed the likes of former US Masters champion Fred Couples, who likened him to Justin Leonard.

And the Indian too is aware that The Open is a tremendous opportunity for him to announce his arrival onto the world stage.

''The last few months have been a lean patch for me. But the game is feeling good again. I've got this week, next week in Germany and the World Golf Championship Bridgestone Invitational coming up over the next month and it will be an exciting time.

''I'm playing the best players in the world and it's an opportunity to showcase what I have and show that I can stack up against the best,'' said Kapur.

Elated to have made it to the major, Kapur said, ''It's great to be here and that's why we work so hard, to play in great tournaments like this. I am pretty happy with the way I'm playing. Although I played four rounds in the Scottish Open last week, I was making some mental errors. I wasn't tournament sharp or mentally sharp because of the few weeks off that we had in Asia. But hopefully, I've put that behind me.

''One of my goals this week is to play four rounds. But the key is to go out there and play well, especially on a golf course like this. If I play well, a lot can happen. It'll be nice to be somewhere in contention,'' he added.

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