FLASH NEWS: நிலவின் தென்துருவத்தில் இறங்கிய சீன விண்கலம்; பாறை மாதிரிகளுடன் 25-ந்தேதி பூமிக்கு திரும்பும் **** சீனாவிடம் இருந்து தைவானை சுதந்திரமாக பிரிந்து செல்ல ஒருபோதும் அனுமதிக்க மாட்டோம் என சீன ராணுவம் தெரிவித்துள்ளது ***** அமெரிக்க ஆயுதங்களால் ரஷிய இலக்குகளை தாக்கலாம்.. உக்ரைனுக்கு அனுமதி அளித்த பைடன் ***** அமெரிக்காவில் நடைபெற்ற 'ஸ்பெல்லிங் பீ' போட்டியில் இந்திய வம்சாவளி மாணவர் புருகத் சோமா சாம்பியன் பட்டம் வென்று அசத்தினார் ***** கலவர வழக்குகளில் இருந்து பாகிஸ்தான் முன்னாள் பிரதமர் இம்ரான்கான் விடுதலை ***** நாட்டில் வெப்ப தாக்கத்திற்கு 56 பேர் பலி; என்.சி.டி.சி. அறிக்கை ***** அசாம் மாநிலத்தில் பெய்த கனமழையால் பிரம்மபுத்திரா நதியில் நீர்மட்டம் உயர்ந்துள்ளது ***** நாடு முழுவதும் 3-ந்தேதி முதல் சுங்கச்சாவடி கட்டணம் உயர்வு ***** இங்கிலாந்தில் இருந்து 100 டன் தங்கத்தை இந்தியாவுக்கு கொண்டு வந்த ரிசர்வ் வங்கி ***** பள்ளியிலேயே மாணவ-மாணவிகளுக்கு வங்கி கணக்கு: பள்ளி கல்வித்துறை அறிவிப்பு ***** பிரக்ஞானந்தாவின் வெற்றி வியக்க வைக்கிறது.. கவுதம் அதானி வாழ்த்து ***** திருப்பதி கோவிலில் 65 வயதுக்கு மேற்பட்ட பக்தர்கள் 30 நிமிடத்தில் தரிசனம் செய்ய வசதி ***** சிக்கிமில் மீண்டும் ஆட்சியமைக்கும் எஸ்.கே.எம்? .. அருணாச்சலப் பிரதேசத்தில் பா.ஜ.க முன்னிலை ***** டெல்லியில் தலைவிரித்தாடும் தண்ணீர் பஞ்சம் *****

Tuesday, March 19, 2019

Meet Diksha Dagar, a hearing-impaired golfer who won her first professional title at 18

17.03.2019
Coached by her father, she overcame a hearing impairment to excel at the sport

Diksha Dagar’s story is unlike any other. A wisp of a girl with a shy smile, she is a profile in courage. And, a good portion of that has been acquired from her tenacious father, Col Narinder Dagar, who has not wavered from the belief that his daughter, born deaf, is world-class in sport.

On Saturday in far-off Cape Town, South Africa, with her father being her caddie, Diksha wrote her own piece of history by becoming the youngest Indian woman to win on the Ladies European Tour (LET).

“I just went out today trying to play my normal game,” said Dagar, who plays with a cochlear implant that helps her to hear at close-to-normal levels. “I really didn’t expect to win, but it happened and I am very happy. I got two lucky breaks towards the end, with a long birdie putt on 15 and then the chip-in on 16. Normally I would just try to chip it close and make the par putt, but this time I had a feeling I could do it and it went in.”

Top amateur
In 2016, while still being an amateur, Diksha was given a place to play at India’s biggest women’s pro event, the Hero Women’s Indian Open. It was her first appearance on the LET and the then 15-year-old from Haryana made the cut and finished as the top amateur.

Aditi Ashok, who became the first Indian to win a LET title, had won the event. At that time, Diksha said, “It’s great to see Aditi win and very nice that she’s the first Indian to win the tournament. I will take a lot of motivation from this and her performance on the LET. This year has instilled a lot of confidence in all Indian players.”

On Saturday, as Diksha emerged triumphant in Investec Women’s South African Open in Capetown, Aditi congratulated Diksha on Twitter. Diksha thanked her for showing the way.

Col Dagar had then observed, “I’m convinced that Diksha has a lot of raw talent as she is effectively self-taught. She’s also a leftie, so she’s more crafty. She is fearless in her shot making. She has great ball striking but will need technical support.”

Dad doubles up as coach
Col Dagar, whose life in the Army had given him access to golf, played at almost scratch handicap at one time.

He brought a semblance of normalcy in his daughter’s life with cochlear implants and then began coaching her at age six.

Diksha, recalling those early days, said, “I have been learning golf since the age of six. I love to play the sport, but no one was ready to provide coaching. So, my dad became my coach.” “Despite his job, he coached me and my brother, who also had hearing problems like me. I could not have played alone, so he coached my brother (Yogesh Dagar), too. I hardly had any friends. Besides my family, golf is my life.” In 2017, she represented India at the Deaflympics in Turkey and took a silver medal. She dominated the Junior circuit and the Ladies circuit. She won a Women’s Golf Association of India pro event while being an amateur.

She represented India at the Queen Sirikit Cup team event and in 2018 won the Singapore Open. She wore India colours at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta. Her father confided that by year-end he was planning to turn his daughter professional.

She played the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School in Morocco and finished T-21 to get a status. Weeks later, she gained status on Australian Ladies Pro Tour’s Qualification. Diksha began her career Down Under and played six events, including the Vic Open co-sanctioned with the US LPGA, but missed the cut. Of the rest, three events were co-sanctioned with the LET. The last one was NSW Open last week and she logged her first top-5 by finishing fifth.

Bright future
From Australia she flew to Capetown for the Women’s South African Open. A tired Diksha double bogeyed the first and third holes to be four-over after three. Then, she shifted gears and dropped just one more bogey in the next 51 holes. Her last 42 holes were bogey free.

Diksha’s win can change her life and open new doors. The Olympics is still some distance away, but who knows Diksha and Aditi together could be doing National duty at Tokyo in 2020.

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