‘DGC game of chess tougher this year’: Shiv Kapur decodes the lies and breaks at Delhi’s iconic golf course

NEW DELHI: Rory McIlroy, superstar draw of the DP World India Championship for the second year running, would probably like a deeper reading of the jungle book that is the Delhi Golf Club this time round. Perhaps, deep is not the right word here with the bogeyman in the bushes listening.“The next time I hit my driver will be in Abu Dhabi,” the World No. 2 had said after his Pro-Am rehearsal here last year at the inaugural DPWIC. Laughter had ensued on a lazy Wednesday afternoon. And the Masters champ eventually finished T-26th at 11-under before packing his bags on Sunday, with a little regret and a few lessons. But the best thing about golf is that you immediately move on.Two strokes behind Rory was Shiv Kapur that week, as the bestplaced Indian. Kapur has moved on too, from his childhood backyard. The Asian Tour website tells us that once he had great fun shooting a 44-over 166 at an AsiaPacific Juniors event, and for the 44-year-old, the many meanderings on the course over the years had yielded laughter, pain, pressure, and finally an Asian Tour triumph at the Panasonic India in 2017. “Monkey is finally off my back now,” he had said, smiling out of relief then. It was probably the same emotions experienced by McIlroy at Augusta in 2025.Based out of Dubai now, Shiv returns to India to play IGPL events, and work on course projects — the 9-hole golf course in Lonavala opens Nov 22, where every Wednesday, children and people from the local community will be exempt from fees. But the minute he takes the gateway to the green haven amidst the bustle of central Delhi, there is no better place to be.“Somebody of Rory’s or Tommy Fleetwood’s calibre may not struggle but certainly, it’s a very unique week on the Tour because they don’t play too many courses like this. It’s like a game of chess where you have to place it in certain areas,” Shiv talked about why strategy is valued over brute force here. “It is more of a power game these days where people outmuscle courses. But DGC is one of those classic tests where you have to think your way around. It’s a week where most players will probably not have the big stick in the bag.”He doesn’t see a repeat of Fleetwood’s winning score of 22-under. “The rough is around 4 to 5 inches, which is, at par with the US Open. You have to keep it in the short grass. It’s going to be a tougher test.”More from ShivTougher after the Gary Player redesign: After the Gary Player redesign of the Lodhi course, it’s a bit more strategic. Earlier, the greens were fairly flat, so you got a lot of birdie opportunities. The main changes were the bunkering and the contouring of the greens. The greens have a lot more slope, more pin positions. There are certain pins this week that you won’t be able to go at. With a combination of high rough and having these sections of the greens, it will be difficult on some holes. Pin placements dictate the entire strategy on hole 7 (par-3) and the 9th (par-4). On the 18th, the front section of the green is very, very narrow, so you have about a five-yard entrance to enter.The final ‘Augusta’ stretch: The real challenge comes when you stand on the 14th tee. You have two par-5s, which are both risk reward par-fives 14 and 18. You have a short par-4 No. 15 and a par-3 with a deep bunker on 17. You can end up playing the last five holes, 3- or 4-underpar or 3- or 4-over. In terms of comparison, I think Augusta National is a bit like that where the 13th is a par 5, the 15th is a par 5. So you see a lot of eagles, bogeys, double bogeys. You can see wild swings on the leaderboard.On IGPL players in the field: The idea is not about calling it PGTI vs IGPL. This is the ‘India Championship’, and the best Indians should be in the field irrespective of affiliation.Stay updated with the latest Asian Games 2026 news, check the Asian Games medal tally and complete Asian Games schedule.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.