When rain fell on Royal Springs, Vicky Shaw chose ‘Shalimar’

Srinagar, May 23: The rain had just begun to settle over the emerald greens of Royal Springs Golf Course when Vicky Shaw took his cappuccino in hand and quietly watched golfers warm up for the WHS Sports Hub Golf Cup.

At 45 years into the game, Shaw no longer rushes through tournament mornings. There is no visible anxiety, no frantic stretching, no loud team talk. Just a measured calm, the kind only decades on the golf course can teach.

“Work hard, play hard,” he says softly, almost like a life philosophy rather than a sporting quote.

For Shaw, golf has never been just a sport. It has been a lifelong companion.

Long before he became Chairman of the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry Kashmir, Shaw was among the prominent faces shaping professional golf in the region and beyond. He served as Vice President and later President of the Professional Golfers Association of India for nearly a decade, helping organise junior coaching camps and tournaments across India.

But on Saturday morning in Srinagar, titles mattered little. What mattered was the game, the weather, and the people beside him.

His team, six golfers from different cities, some strangers until this tournament, had spent the previous evening discussing something as simple as a team name on WhatsApp.

“I suggested two names, Chinar and Shalimar,” Shaw said with a smile. “Shalimar clicked instantly. I thought if we are playing in Kashmir, the name should reflect the beauty around us.”

And so Team Shalimar was born.

The team, a blend of youth and experience, represented what golf often quietly creates, friendships without introductions and competition without hostility.

“We have youngsters in the team, and I understand their excitement because I was exactly like that once,” he said. “My only advice to them was, relax, enjoy the day, and put in your best effort.”

For Shaw, golf is as much about temperament as technique.

“If you are stressed, you won’t play well. Golf teaches you patience. It teaches you how to stay calm,” he said while glancing towards the misty fairways.

Outside Kashmir, temperatures in cities like Delhi had crossed uncomfortable summer highs. But here, under cloudy skies and gentle rain, Shaw compared the atmosphere to Scotland, golf’s spiritual home.

“The weather is absolutely marvellous. Golfers never stop, even if it rains,” he laughed.

His relationship with Kashmir Golf stretches back decades. A member of the Kashmir Golf Club for over 45 years, Shaw also witnessed the rise of Royal Springs Golf Course after its commissioning in 2001. He remembers when the course was recognised among Asia’s best soon after opening.

According to him, golf has played a quiet but powerful role in Kashmir’s tourism story.

“Golf tourists are high spenders. They travel, they stay longer, and they fall in love with Kashmir,” he said. “This sport is also a tourism multiplier.”

Watching younger organisers now take ownership of the sport gives him hope. Shaw praised the efforts of the Woodland House School promoters and WHS Sports Hub founders for bringing golfers from Mumbai, Delhi and Chandigarh to Srinagar.

For him, however, the beauty of golf still lies in its simplicity.

“There is no other sport where you spend hours walking and talking with your partner or even your opponent,” he said. “That bonding is special.”

Soon after finishing his coffee, Shaw prepared for the tee-off. Around him, younger golfers adjusted gloves, checked clubs and discussed strategy. He remained composed.

Forty-five years in golf had taught him that sometimes the best strategy is simply to breathe, enjoy the rain, and walk the course.