Cool Lahiri turns on the heat at DGC
Anirban Lahiri's first brush with vipassana was as a teenager, and since then he has stayed in touch.
Anirban Lahiri's first brush with vipassana was as a teenager, and since then he has stayed in touch.
Lahiri was an amateur when he was drawn to this ancient form of meditation, and the stint in 2005 is remembered for what it did to his golf. "It was career-changing," says the 24-year-old.
The need to go over the lesson of "seeing things as they are" arose three years later, but it is the latest stint he is most appreciative of. The 10 days spent last month, away from the intrusion of television and mobile phones, were for "personal peace", and Lahiri feels he has matured enough to carry forward the benefits to the golf course.
The final day of the BILT Open late last year evokes a shake of the head, but then Lahiri had almost forgotten the method of "cutting off the link to negativity".
Post the course in Hyderabad, which also entailed staying silent for nine days, he can claim improvement, but is far from perfecting the art of shying away from extreme emotions.
Learning on the go
"It is a lifelong exercise," says Lahiri. The frame of mind, which accepts things as they are, was put to test at the Avantha Masters, and the jottings from last week were put to work at the Delhi Golf Club.
Landing on the 13th hole, Lahiri had managed to stay away from that heady feeling of seeing three birdies against his name, but was in for another test.
An awry second shot would have had him swearing under the breath, on Wednesday, it was the newfound ability to look beyond which was on view.
Rather than coming down heavily on the self for the inextricable situation, focussing on making par helped as the outlook was instrumental in his picking up four more shots and the sole lead.
Also working for Lahiri was the outing in last year's SAIL Open, which helped push painful memories of the Delhi Golf Club to the background.
"From missing cuts, I got the confidence to contend and win," he said, referring to his breakthrough win on the Asian Tour soon after at the Panasonic Open.
The practice round on Tuesday was enough to make up for the time spent away from this quaint venue, and with the feel back, Lahiri left it to his clubs while he smiled his way through the opening day.