![\"Anirban](\"images\/golf\/Anirban-Lahiri-Macau-Open.jpg\")
Southport, England: Indian star Anirban Lahiri feels he is mentally prepared ahead of The Open which takes place on Thursday.<\/p>\nSouthport, England: Indian star Anirban Lahiri feels he is mentally prepared ahead of The Open which takes place on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The 2015 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion qualified for the year\u2019s third Major last week and hopes to make full use of his playing opportunity at Royal Birkdale Golf Club.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was keeping an eye on where my world ranking was and was doing my own research to see how far it has gone down the list. I was quietly confident so mentally I was prepared to play this week about a month ago. That\u2019s why I played in Scotland last week with the intention to play this week,\u201d said Lahiri.<\/p>\n
The 30-year-old will be making his fifth appearance at The Open and the experience has helped him prepare for the challenging week ahead. <\/p>\n
\u201cI think it is one of the best The Open tracks which I\u2019ve played so far. As the conditions get tougher, it will be a real challenge. I\u2019m really looking forward to it. I\u2019m glad I played in Scotland last week and get some links golf under the belt,\u201d said Lahiri<\/p>\n
\u201cI get more used to the style of golf. You got to hit more bumps and runs and it makes a lot of difference when the wind gets up and especially if it starts raining. It is an advantage having some experience and I\u2019m feeling more comfortable and I don\u2019t feel out of place,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
It has been a mixed season for Lahiri in 2017 but he feels he is slowly turning the corner in time to contend for The Open. His best finish this year was tied second at the Memorial Tournament on the PGA Tour.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has been an up-and-down season. I\u2019ve had lots of lulls with some bright sparks in there. I\u2019ve not been very consistent, unlike how I usually play. I\u2019m usually good at putting four good rounds together. I was putting a lot of pressure on myself earlier in the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is my first year after keeping my card on the PGA Tour. I wanted to consolidate that and I wanted to get closer to winning my first event. I didn\u2019t finish in the top-50 last year and I was trying really hard to get into Augusta. I was chasing a number of things and ended up putting a lot of pressure on myself,\u201d said Lahiri.<\/p>\n
With renewed confidence, Lahiri is determined to make it a week to remember. \u201cIn the last two or three months, I\u2019ve taken it easy and try to enjoy my golf more. I\u2019m playing better golf now. My confidence is really good.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m making a lot of birdies and I\u2019m putting good numbers over 18 holes. I seem to have that odd round that I let it go. I got to be really focussed right through the week especially on the course like this. If you lose your focus or confidence, you can let it get away from you. I feel like I\u2019m up for it,\u201d said Lahiri.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Southport, England: Indian star Anirban Lahiri feels he is mentally prepared ahead of The Open which takes place on Thursday.<\/p>\n
The 2015 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion qualified for the year\u2019s third Major last week and hopes to make full use of his playing opportunity at Royal Birkdale Golf Club.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[1065,158,10690,6480,466,11578],"class_list":["post-35223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-golf-golf","tag-anirban-lahiri","tag-asian-tour","tag-golf","tag-indian-sports","tag-indian-sports-news","tag-the-open"],"yoast_head":"\n