Siddikur 'hungry for a title'
Bangladesh's premier golfer Siddikur Rahman said he is hungry for a title as he has not won a single title on the Asian Tour in more than five years. The two-time Asian Tour winner shot to fame when he won the Brunei Open in 2010 and rode on his excellent form to grab his second title on the continent's premier tour in the Hero Indian Open in 2013.
However, the now 34-year-old golfer feels he has long been starved of success in one of the apex tours in the world. Ahead of the Bangabandhu Cup Golf Open, which tees off today at the Kurmitola Golf Club (KGC), Siddikur said it was time he ended this long draught.
"I'm hungry. I'm really hungry to win another tournament on the Asian Tour and even on the European Tour," Siddikur said while talking to media at the KGC lounge yesterday.
The Kurmitola-based golfer, who has countless times come close to winning on both the Asian Tour and the European Tour since that 2013 victory, said he no longer feels making the cut is enough for golfers of his level.
"There is always this drive inside me to win a tournament these days. For golfers at my level, the ultimate goal is no more to make the cut and earn some money from an event. I am waiting eagerly to grab a victory," Siddikur said.
The Bangabandhu Cup Golf Open will be the fifth consecutive edition of the Asian Tour event in Dhaka. Siddikur's best performance thus far has been a second-place finish in 2017 edition while he failed to make it to the top 20 on the other three occasions. While the ace golfer has won PGTI events on this very course since 2013, he has not made it to the top during the Asian Tour events. Siddikur feels the pressure of expectation of delivering on home soil may be a bit too much. However, he feels if he can play his natural game, he should be able to break his title jinx, and it could be next Saturday.
"There is always a lot of pressure when playing on the home course because there are a lot of expectations. I have expectations as well. There is a little bit of pressure," Siddikur said. "But the way I am playing currently regarding preparation and fitness, if I can play my own game, winning will not be a problem. I hope for the best this week."