Srinagar, May 23: The rain clouds hung low over the lush greens of Royal Springs Golf Course as young golfer from Rajasthan quietly prepared for another round in Kashmir.
Dressed casually, speaking softly and carrying none of the intensity often associated with competitive sport, Padmanav Jadeja, better known among friends as Paddy, looked more like a traveller soaking in the mountains than a player about to tee off in a two-day tournament.
But golf, for him, is exactly that, travel, connection and escape.
“I play golf as a hobby which has now become something I really enjoy,” he said with an easy smile. “I like travelling and playing different courses.”
Jadeja, from a royal family, is now based in Rajasthan and, had returned to Kashmir after playing here nearly two years ago during the Khyber Cup.
That memory, he admits, stayed with him.
“It was one of the better tournaments I have played,” he said. “The setting here is beautiful. And honestly, it is also a perfect escape from the Rajasthan and Delhi summer.”
While temperatures in the plains continue to soar above 40 degrees, Kashmir’s cool breeze and rain-soaked mornings have become a welcome refuge for golfers.
For Paddy and his friends, the decision to come was almost spontaneous.
“The kids’ holidays had started, and we thought, why not go to Kashmir and play golf,” he said.
What followed was less a carefully planned campaign and more a youthful sporting adventure. A few calls, conversations with organisers, and suddenly a team was formed for the WHS Sports Hub Golf Cup.
“We are actually just a patched-up team,” he laughed. “We just got together and said let us go play.”
There are no dramatic strategies, no intense pre-tournament meetings, and no pressure of expectations. The team, according to him, simply wants to enjoy the course and perhaps turn this visit into an annual tradition.
“We hope to do well, but you can’t get too serious,” he said. “You just take it as it comes.”
Yet beneath the relaxed personality lies an athlete shaped by years in competitive cricket.
Long before golf entered his life, Jadeja played U-19 cricket and even played a few practice matches at the professional level before deciding not to pursue cricket further.
“I could not make the big leap,” he admitted honestly. “But sport has always remained part of my life.”
That sporting background, he says, made the transition to golf natural.
“When you grow up playing cricket, you are already used to spending hours on the field, staying patient and focused,” he said.
But unlike many professionals who struggle to balance work and sport, he believes golf actually complements his professional life.
“Golf helps you connect with people,” he said. “Even if you build one meaningful connection in a year through the game, it makes sense.”
That philosophy perhaps explains why golf attracts him beyond competition. For Jadeja, the sport is less about scorecards and more about people, places and moments.
And on a rainy Srinagar morning, with mist floating above the fairways and golfers gathering near the first tee, that moment felt complete.
There was no visible nervousness before the round. No bold predictions either.
Just a young golfer from Rajasthan, escaping the desert heat, walking calmly into the Kashmiri rain with a golf club in hand and no expectations beyond enjoying the game.
