Diksha Dagar, who became the youngest Indian woman to win on the Ladies European Tour aged 18 in last year’s Investec South African Women’s Open, has returned to Westlake Golf Club in Cape Town ready to defend the title, with a new sponsor.
Diksha is proud to have the support of the world’s largest two-wheeler manufacturer, Hero MotoCorp, as her main sponsor and will debut the corporate logo on her cap henceforth.
According to Diksha, she was approached by several international brands but selected Hero MotoCorp due to the company’s long and steadfast commitment towards women’s professional golf in India, including the Hero Women’s Indian Open, which is co-sanctioned by the LET and WGAI.
“Having Hero’s support gives me a lot of encouragement and frees me up to focus solely on my golf,” said Diksha, who was celebrating the ‘happy and colourful’ Hindu festival of Holi at Westlake Golf Club on Tuesday.
India’s rising star @DikshaDagar ?? ? ?
Defending at the @SAWomensOpen ✅
New sponsor @HeroMotoCorp ✅
Playing @OlympicGolf @Tokyo2020 ✅ #InvestecSAWomensOpen pic.twitter.com/J6Cn0b3hSA— Ladies European Tour (@LETgolf) March 10, 2020
Last year, playing in just her fourth professional start on the LET as a rookie, Diksha tapped in for par on the final hole to edge out former three-time champion Lee-Anne Pace by a stroke.
The 19-year-old left-hander from New Delhi feels that her game is in good shape ahead of her title defence. A tie for 32nd in the LET’s season-opening Australian Ladies Classic Bonville, followed by a tie for seventh in the Women’s New South Wales Open, sees her start the week ranked 14th on the Race to Costa Del Sol.
“It feels so good to be here in Cape Town and it brings back good memories from last year. I hope I will play well again this year.
“My game has improved and I feel much stronger. I’m very confident, playing well and yes, I can do it!” she said.
Diksha has been working hard on her fitness, performing push-ups to strengthen her shoulders and legs in the off-season, with her main goal this year to represent India in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. It’s a goal which she is on track to achieve, sitting in 56th position amongst the field of 60 on the Olympic Golf Rankings at present.
Qualification would be a phenomenal achievement in itself – made all the more incredible with Diksha having represented India at the 2017 Summer Deaflympics, where she earned a silver medal and she added: “The Olympics is the biggest sporting event and it would be an honour to represent India. I am so excited about the Olympics this year. My goal is to keep playing well and to play my best.”