Indian duo Lahiri and Thomas eager to make most of opportunities on The International Series

Rayhan Thomas and Anirban Lahiri are two Indian golfers at different stages of their careers, but both have global ambition, and both see real opportunity for talent from the subcontinent and beyond through the pathway that is being offered by the Asian Tour and The International Series.

Thomas, 24, finished an impressive eighth last month in a quality field at International Series Morocco, his first tournament as a professional on the Asian Tour after graduating from Oklahoma State University.

That result in the third of 10 elevated events on the Asian Tour schedule brought an invite to International Series England and a shot at the next bumper $US2 million prize purse at Foxhills Club & Resort.

The tournament once again gave Dubai-born Thomas a “huge” opportunity to assess himself against the cream of the Asian Tour and the marquee names from the LIV Golf League. On this occasion, in alien conditions, Thomas narrowly missed the weekend cut by one. However, he still saw real value in his experience.

He said: “To have this opportunity, to have the invites I got in Morocco, and this week, it is huge for me to have got some tournaments on the schedule. Otherwise it is so up in the air. So if I can play as many as I can of these, it will be huge for my confidence, huge for my game, it gives me an opportunity to progress and play some majors someday.”

Compatriot Lahiri is one of those big names from the LIV contingent who regularly play on The International Series. The Crushers GC star is no stranger to the Asian Tour and the opportunities it brings, having won seven times since joining in 2008 and winning the Order of Merit in 2015.

With The International Series offering 10 elite-level events at world-class destinations around the world, Lahiri urged his compatriot to learn fast from the experience. The 37-year-old, who finished second at LIV Golf Andalucia last month, said: “It is hard to replace experience. You have to go through a lot of stuff to learn and that is the beauty of The International Series.

“You play Morocco, you play the UK, you are going to play in Asia. You are going to play in different conditions, different weather, different grasses, different layouts and that is amazing, because that is what you really need to do as a professional. You have to grow, adapt, learn, and put all these shots and techniques and adjustments in your game.”

While he urged Thomas to learn fast, Lahiri also encouraged the youngster to take an aggressive approach to his opportunities. He said: “Rayhan has age on his side. He is young, he is exuberant. He is going to come out fearless, and he is going to come out aggressive, and that is exactly what he needs to do at this time of his career.

“You have got to play whatever you get into. If you have got to play nine weeks in a row, you play nine weeks in a row. If you have got to travel to seven countries in those nine weeks, you do that, right? But at the same time, you must stay in the present, whatever that is.”

Lahiri is confident the fields at The International Series offer all the Asian Tour players a wonderful chance to fast-track their learning.

Lahiri, who finished just one shot better than Thomas to make the weekend cut on level par, explained: “It is a great platform. Some of the guys who have had the opportunity to play in these fields, have played with major winners, and otherwise may never have had that opportunity. I have played with so many young pros who are now playing their trade on the Asian Tour.

“It has been very interesting, fascinating for me to see what is happening and how much talent there is. Every now and then, I interact with whoever wants to have a chat. It is truly growing the game.”