The tap-in that Diksha Dagar hit from about a foot away from the hole, to win her maiden title on the European Ladies tour, might have been her easiest shot of the competition. Yet it's likely she would have been as confident had she been facing a far tougher task on the final hole of the Investec South African Women's Open. She had managed just that in the final round at the tournament, hitting a long putt for birdie to draw level for the first time in the competition with then leader Lee Anne Pace.
Dagar's win, the second by an Indian on the European tour, is particularly remarkable considering it came in just the 18-year-old's fourth start in what is her debut season on the tour. And if you are to ask Dagar's father Narinder, who caddied for her in Cape Town, new clubs -- including that title-winning putter -- have had a significant part to play in that rapid rise.
Ever since she was first introduced to golf as a seven year old by her father, a colonel in the Indian Army, Diksha's always had a problem finding clubs. That's because she's left-handed. With less than 10 per cent of golfers being left-handed, equipment importers in India usually don't cater to their requirements. "Golf is a very small sport in India," says Narinder. "There are about 14 clubs we use on the course and it's very difficult to find left-handed versions of them in India." The first clubs he bought for his daughter were sold at a significant markup and when he went to a custom club fitter in India, he was told of another option. "I was told that Diksha would always have an issue in getting clubs," says Narinder. "I was told to make her a right-handed player instead."
While she tried to play that way for a couple of months, Diksha eventually gave up that attempt. And while her father made do by trying to get specific clubs, there was always something not quite right. "I'm not from a wealthy family, so it isn't as if we can simply keep buying clubs until we got the one that was exactly what we wanted," says Narinder.
Indeed, there were instances where on finding a club that seemed to work for her, Diksha would have to make compromises in other areas -- sometimes having to adjust her grip on the handle as she grew older and taller. While Narinder says he took the club to the only fitter in India, the results were far from perfect. "It wasn't anyone's fault," he says. "If you take a Maruti and you make any number of adjustments to it, it isn't going to suddenly become a Ferrari, will it?"
Diksha managed to excel despite the limitations of her equipment: winning the Singapore Ladies Amateur Open, a silver medal at the Deaflympics in Turkey, posting the best-ever score by an Indian at the prestigious Queen Sirikit Cup and eventually representing India at the Asian Games.
But it was the prospect of turning professional that eventually caused Dagar to make the change. "The set she was using was a good one but not for someone of her calibre and ability," says Narinder. "If you are looking at playing at the highest professional level, you have to find the club that works precisely for you."
She got her opportunity at the Ballarat Icons ALPG Proam tournament in Australia where she competed last month. "Australia has a far more developed golfing culture than India, so we just walked into a regular golf store," says Narinder. "For Diksha, it was like seeing the ocean after swimming in a well all her life. There were rows upon rows of options that she had to choose from."
Diksha took her time before making her choices -- a new driver, rescue (meant for hitting out of the rough) and putter. "She wanted to get everything just right," says Narinder. "A lot of elements of the club had to be aligned. The thickness of the grip, the length and girth of the shaft, the material used in its construction, the weight of the club head, the amount of torque that can be generated with it. All of these makes a difference in the kind of game."
The result came in almost immediately. At the Ballarat Proam, Diksha finished in 12th place. And once she had her equipment fitted for her, she recorded her best results -- third place at the Aoyuan International Moss Vale Pro Am, followed by a tie for fifth place at the Worrells NSW Women's Open.
All those results though were overshadowed by her win in Cape Town. That win has earned her a European Tour card and Diksha now hopes to build on those results over the rest of the year. She's also planning to add to her arsenal of clubs, says her father. "Her kit isn't complete just yet," says Narinder. "We have about 75 per cent of what we want. But we will fill in the gaps. The players who used to use the best equipment used to struggle against her when she was using her old clubs. When she has the equipment she needs, it's going to become very hard for them."