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Saptak Talwar’s single-minded, two-year-long chase was finally rewarded when he won the PGTI Order of Merit at the end of the DP World India Championship on Sunday.
At Delhi Golf Club, where he started playing golf, the 27-year-old wrote the next chapter of what promises to be an exciting career – he has secured a card on the more rewarding, more challenging and global DP World Tour.
The homecoming may not have been as epic as Odysseus’ 10-year struggle, but Talwar’s odyssey has shades of Homer’s mythological hero. Over those 24 months, he experienced similar ups and downs, heartbreaks and triumphs, intense battles against the elements and luck and waged a constant battle against himself in an effort to improve.
It all started in October 2024 with the brave decision to take the road less traveled. Talwar went to Huevla, a small coastal town in southern Spain, to play the second stage of the DP World Tour Q School.
The domestic season in India is at its peak then, and most players shun the Q School because of its length (three stages, including six rounds in the final stage) and the uncertainty (just 20 cards on offer).
He made it through the second stage but could only secure a card on the second-rung HotelPlanner Tour (HPT) by finishing tied 66th in the final stage.
The next big decision was to play the full 2025 season on the HPT. Talwar knew it would drain his finances (smaller purses and a lot of travel), but he needed to get out of his comfort zone. He also knew that to succeed on the main DPWT, he needed experience of playing in Europe and its varied conditions.
That debut season was an eye-opener. Among many things, Talwar quickly realised, as early as April, that he needed to do something about his physique, and also his ball speed, if he wants to hit it longer and give himself a better chance against the competition.
“During the two events in the UAE, I was having some back spasms. I went to the European Tour Performance Institute (ETPI) guys, and there is a Sikh gentleman with them (Poora Singh), who not only helped me, but also had a long chat and told me in no uncertain terms that I needed to put some pounds on and get stronger, or otherwise my career will be finished with injuries,” Talwar recalls.
That chat led to Talwar working with a sports nutrition expert (Amy O’Donnell) and increasing his work in the gym. The result? He put on nearly seven kilos.
While this was going on, Talwar also upped his ball speed by nearly seven-eight miles per hour to around 175. That added approximately 10 yards to his clubs, making it a lot easier to attack pins he wouldn’t have dared to at the start of the year.
And then there were the tough decisions he made. And also backed them up to the hilt.
Like, despite getting high up on the Road to Mallorca ranking (HPT Order of Merit), he felt winning the DPW-PGTI Order of Merit would give him a better chance to graduate. After a long chat with his father, Rajiv, he left the HPT and concentrated solely on the domestic tour in the second half.
Like, not playing a DPW-PGTI event before the Asian Games so that he was fresh for his trip to Nagoya, and for the DPWIC. Khalin Joshi won event after event and closed the gap. But Talwar stuck with his decision and nearly pulled off a medal for India. One stretch of five holes in the third round denied him that honour. A tied sixth-place finish was creditable though.
There is also his mindset. He arrived at Delhi Golf Club with a healthy lead but always stayed in the present and never let his mind race ahead. His mother is a math professor at Delhi University, and it would have been easy for Talwar to resort to permutations and combinations after each round.
“I must thank a whole ecosystem, really. My parents have been rock-solid in their support. That entire team at HPT and DPW-PGTI has helped me even when I haven’t asked for it,” says Talwar.
There is no rest for the weary and Talwar is already planning a trip to Florida to meet his coach (Todd Anderson) and prepare for the 2027 DPWT season.
Talwar is obviously excited to start his season Down Under, but even at his proudest moment, he knew the grind to get better can’t stop.
“I played a couple of rounds with Luke Donald, and it was an experience. He didn’t have the best of tournaments, but his short game is still sublime. I know how he became the world No1, and I know that I must work a lot harder. I have played the DGC thousands of times, but I still struggled with the rough they had this year,” says Talwar, who finished tied 55th in the tournament.
“I don’t want to say I will win on the DPWT next year, but I want to be able to deal better with situations that I find myself in. I think I am a little better prepared for Europe, but if I have to compete against these guys and contend, I will have to work even more on my game, my physique, and myself.”
