Harpal Singh Bedi / Gurugram
Winner of the Lacoste Ladies Open de France, Caroline Hedwall is looking at the Hero Women’s Indian Open (HWIO) with a lot of expectations.
For Hedwall, India holds a special place. The Hero Women’s Indian Open was one of the four big titles she won in that special season of 2011.She now comes to India to regain that title .
The HWIO will be played at the DLF Golf and Country Club in Gurugram from October 18-21.
Hedwall heads a list of 11 stars from the Ladies European Tour’s Top-20 in the current Order of Merit. Five of last year’s Top-10 finishers, including India’s Vani Kapoor, will also be vying for the title.
The field includes defending champion Camille Chevalier of France, who after her win last year has had a modest season with five cuts in 10 starts and former champion Beth Allen..
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The players will have an added incentive of a record purse of US $ 500,000, and the event to be held over 72 holes, will also be telecast live globally.
Her current form indicates that Hedwall is all set to make a strong bid for the title once again. She has played seven events on the LET, as she divides her time between the LET and LPGA.
On the LET this year, she has missed just one cut in seven starts and finished in the Top-10 four times, including the win in France.
In the period soon after her magical rookie season in 2011, Hedwall shifted her focus to the LPGA, where one of her best seasons was in 2013. She was in the Top-10 six times and then as one of the Captain’s Pick, she became the first player ever in Solheim Cup history to win five matches.
After 2013, she has tasted only moderate success, though every year she has managed a few Top-10 finishes on the LPGA. The closest she came to her first LPGA win was in the 2014 Reignwood LPGA Classic.
Now that Hedwall, has tasted victory after a gap of six years, she is keen to build on that success on the LET and her improved performance to take her game to higher level.