The country’s top women golfers will be up against a stellar line-up from the Ladies European and Asian Tours, when the $300,000 Hero Women’s Indian Open tees off at the DLF Golf and Country Club here on Friday.
The 108-player field will be headlined by Spaniard Carlota Ciganda, the Order of Merit leader on the Ladies European Tour, while 2011 winner Caroline Hedwall of Sweden returns to defend her title.
Other stars include multiple winners in 2012, Scot Carly Booth and Stacey Keating of Australia, besides two-time champion Phatlum Pornanong. Veteran Laura Davies will look to continue her love affair with the DLF course, where she won two years ago.
The Indian challenge, led by Smriti Mehra and Sharmila Nicolett, includes rookie Vani Kapoor, who made the cut as an amateur last year, Nalini Singh Siwach and Neha Tripathi among others.