Thirteen-year-old Ojaswani Saraswat has already created history by becoming the youngest Indian woman to make the cut at a Ladies European Tour (LET) event, the Women’s Indian Open, but the young golfer has her sights set on a much bigger goal — becoming world number one and winning an Olympic gold medal, just like her idol Neeraj Chopra.
Ojaswani is also the second-youngest player in women’s golf history to make the cut at an LET event, after Ariya Jutanugarn, who made the weekend at the Finnair Masters in 2008 at the age of 12. “I am very happy to make the cut. This is just the beginning. My aim is to become the best in India and then in the world. I would like to be world number one someday. I want to be the flag bearer (for India) and win an Olympic gold medal for my country. It’s my biggest dream,” Ojaswani told PTI at the DLF Golf and Country Club on Sunday morning.
“I was inspired by Neeraj Chopra because he is an Olympic gold medallist and I saw his mindset. I think all sports are pretty similar, so the mindset is pretty much the same. I think I just got inspired by him when he won,” she said.
“The invitation to the Hero Women’s Indian Open was a big excitement for me because it was my first time playing at DLF.
I watched this tournament last year, and now I am playing in it, so it makes a huge difference for me. Making the cut was a dream come true,” she added. Asked how she made history by making the cut at one of the most difficult and challenging golf courses in the world, Ojaswani credited adjustments to her swing.