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Ali Sher's journey to the top echelons of Indian golf is the proverbial rags-to-riches story. Sher's epoch-making Indian Open victory in 1991 was indeed a seminal moment for golf in India.
Starting as a caddie at the Delhi Golf Club, Sher went on to become the first Indian professional ever to win the prestigious Indian Open title, 162 years after golf found a home in India with the foundation of the Royal Calcutta Golf Club.
Since its inception in 1964, the Indian Open was dominated by foreign players including some of the biggest names in golf like Peter Thomson and Graham Marsh. The diminutive Sher broke the foreign stranglehold by putting up a spirited effort. As if to prove that his first win was no flash in the pan, Ali Sher repeated the magic in 1993 when he beat Feroz Ali by one stroke.
Ali Sher's stunning victory heralded the coming of age of Indian golf and opened the floodgates for a new breed of talented golfers. Accolades and awards poured in for Ali Sher and he was conferred the Arjuna Award as well as an honorary membership of the Delhi Golf Club.
