| Daniel Chopra |
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| April 2007 | |
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UPDATE, October 29, 2007 - Daniel Chopra won his first PGA Tour title
on Monday, the Ginn sur Mer Classic. Congrats! Chopra finished off a two-under
71 for the win and a $810,000 first-place check. The win also propelled him up 61
places in the world rankings. Read our interview with Chopra below from earlier
this year. The only goal Daniel Chopra sets for himself is to improve on all aspects of his game every year, and by all accounts, this PGA Tour golfer of mixed Swedish and Indian descent is doing just that, and more. Chopra first got noticed as an amateur, winning an array of tournaments, including the All India World Junior Championship in 1988, 1989 and in 1991. Since turning pro in 1992, he has continued to reign over international events and has become a strong contender on the PGA Tour, completing the 2006 season with six Top 10 finishes and ranked as the No. 1 putter. The 6-foot-tall golfer, who sports Swedish blond-tipped locks and craves chicken tikka masala, opened up for an East West-style Q&A about the Tour, growing up in India and being a global golfer.
I started playing at the age of 8 when I first moved to India from Sweden. My uncle and grandparents all played and were members of Delhi Golf Club. Is it as popular in India as it is in the United States? No, but it is growing very fast, and there are more and more golf courses every year. I am still a member of Delhi Golf Club and enjoy playing there every year. It brings back such great memories from when I was a kid, and it is where my passion for the game began. You represent Sweden professionally. Why not India? How did you decide which country to represent? I had dual citizenship until the age of 18; at that time I had to choose between my Swedish passport and my Indian one. The Swedish passport made traveling around the world a lot easier; I didn't need a visa for every country in the world. And for a young footloose pro like myself, I really needed ease of travel! What has been the highlight of your years as a pro golfer? There have been many highlights. On the course, perhaps my very first win as a pro in Johor Bharu, Malaysia, in 1995 and the day I got my PGA Tour card back in 2003. The on-course experiences have enriched my life off the course, too. I have been able to play with incredibly interesting people like President Clinton, Arnold Palmer at my home here at Bay Hill (in Orlando, Fla.), actors, footballers and cricket players. I am looking forward to my next highlight being a win on the PGA Tour. Other golfers you admire? When I was a junior golfer, I loved watching Greg Norman, Nick Faldo and Seve Ballesteros. Then once I started playing with the best in the world, I stopped putting them on a pedestal and it became about respect. I live at Bay Hill, and I also really enjoy my relations with Arnold Palmer. He has such tremendous presence and is certainly a man who shaped the entertainment value of the game. What advice can you offer to young golfers just getting started? The best advice I can give a young upcoming golfer is to spend less time on the driving range and more time on the golf course. They need to learn how to get the ball in the hole and to score well. Also, how to shoot even par on days where you are not hitting the ball that well. This can only come through game experience, adapting to conditions and uncontrollable variables. And finally, after the Tour each year you compete in international events. Do you think your Indian upbringing has helped you as a global golfer? India is a place saturated in culture, climate and history, and growing up there certainly helped my adaptation and appreciation to other environments. And growing up on the food and water has given me a cast iron stomach! |
How did you start playing golf?
