Courtesy: EMMAR-MGF

India is set to make its mark in international tournament play.

The Indian Masters debuts next month at the Delhi Golf Club in New Delhi.

This is a brand new tournament on the Asian and European Tours - both tours sanction the event. In fact, there was controversy around the Indian Masters when the European Tour unilaterally announced its creation late last year.

Asian Tour organizers were taken by surprise and protested that they hadn't been consulted. And the Professional Golf Tour of India also chimed in, complaining that it, too, was overlooked when the European Tour charged ahead.

But the dust has settled, the Asian and European Tours are co-sanctioning the event and the PGTI has been allotted 25 spots in the field for Indian players.

Jeev Milkha Singh will certainly take one of those spots; Arjun Atwal will be there, too.

But the marquis name for the inaugural event is that of Ernie Els. Els has agreed to show up, passing on the chance to play in the Qatar Masters.

Organizers of the Indian Masters are hoping it will launch the sport in India in a big way, especially among young people. That's a tall order in a country where cricket is number one and football (soccer) is number two.

But India boasts roughly 20 or so courses, so the sport does have some presence.

There is no doubt, though, that a tournament with the blessing of both the Asian and European Tours is the biggest thing in Indian golf to date.

The Delhi Golf Club was built in 1931 but remodeled in the late 1970s by Peter Thompson. It measures a few ticks shy of 7 thousand yards, respectable if not long. It is a private course but it does allow public play.

Its most testing aspects may come in the form of the wildlife around the course.

Apparently, no fewer than 300 species of birdlife can be found and that suggests a high noise level! Peacocks are prominent on the course and they carry a piercing wail when they let loose.

The purse for the tournament is 2 and half million dollars.

This part of the world will see more and more tournaments in the next few years. Already, the Asian Tour is pushing for an African Open. This year's Pakistan Open has been postponed because of the violence and unrest surrounding the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and the coming elections next month.

But the signs are there. New markets for tournament golf are ready to spring up in brand new geographical regions of the globe.