Swede Joel Sjöholm hopes to make it big at the Avantha Masters in India
26-year-old Joel Sjöholm is contemplating a surprise win at this week’s Avantha Masters on the Indian turf, after starting off a strong season on the European Tour.
Finishing for a joint ninth, Sjöholm was among the group of trailblazing players at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic and is hoping to utilise the confidence from his plausible start on the tour.
Sjöholm qualified for the European Tour card after a stellar performance on the secondary Challenge Tour in 2011.
He forged six top-five finishes on the Challenge Tour to finish twelfth on the ladder and finally making it into the mainstream European Tour.
He said, “Before it my name was not very big on The European Tour. It’s only a top ten, but it feels like a lot more people are following me now. I hope people realise that the guy out there is just who I am, I’m not trying to sell a personality or crave attention or anything like that”.
Born in Chile, Sjöholm was adopted by his Swede parents at the age of three. He is a graduate of the Georgia State University, often termed as the breeding ground of the world class golfers.
After turning professional in 2008, Sjöholm decided to join the Challenge Tour.
Although he has not won a title on the tour, he still qualified for the European Tour with his impressive performance last year.
The chubby Swede has been particularly careful with his attire on the course and is hoping people will start recognising him more often on the likes of colourful John Daly.
He said, “Most of the reaction I’ve had from people has been about my outfits, and I’m glad about that because the outfits are really for the fans. Hopefully they start to recognise me now because a lot of people were talking about me last week”.
European Tour is now moving to the Indian turf ,with the latest episode of Avantha Masters, after a blistering opening of the year with events in South Africa and Middle East.
Top-ranked Indian players, including defending champion SSP Chowrasia, will be returning to defend the title at the DLF Golf and Country Club.
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