Aditi ASHOK

Aditi would soon go on to build a reputation as a teen achiever by clinching the National Junior Championships for the next three years – 2012, 2013 and 2014 - and holding both the junior and senior titles in 2014.

She steadily grew to become the only Indian golfer to play at the Asian Youth Games in 2013, and at the Youth Olympics and the Asian Games in 2014.

Aditi Ashok’s impressive amateur career reached its peak when she won the Ladies British Amateur Stroke Play Championship in 2015. She turned pro on January 1, 2016.

Six months down the line, she created history at the Rio Olympics.

Aditi became the first Indian woman golfer to play at the Summer Games and at 18 years old, was also the youngest contender in the women’s event.

While Anirban Lahiri and SSP Chawrasia were well-known and established professionals in India, very few had heard of Aditi Ashok beyond the golfing community.

So, it was truly remarkable that she led the second round at the Olympic Golf Course for a brief period, even more so considering she was ranked 57th out of 60 heading into the tournament.

But without much competitive golf experience under her belt leading into the Rio 2016, Aditi Ashok eventually finished 41st out of the 60 golfers.

It unexpectedly created a few ripples in India and there was a spike in Google searches for golf in India after that run.

Aditi Ashok then won her first Ladies European Tour (LET) title in October and the fact that it had come at the Indian Open, her home tournament, made it even more special.

The Bengaluru girl, who collects lapel pins as a hobby, won her second title at the Qatar Open a week later, picking up the ‘LET Rookie of the Year’ award for her efforts.

Aditi Ashok continued to break new ground for her sport, becoming India's first representative on the LPGA Tour after making the switch in 2017.

Her stock would only increase after Aditi’s commendable performance at Tokyo 2020. She was in medal contention until the final round of the golf tournament at the Kasumigaseki Country Club.

Two years later, however, Aditi Ashok made it to the podium at a major multi-sport event after winning a silver medal at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou. It also made her the first Indian woman golfer to win an Asian Games medal. Earlier in the year, she had won the Magical Kenya Ladies Open for her fourth LET title.

The Indian golfer is a regular at women’s Majors and with expectations heightened after her Tokyo 2020 and Hangzhou 2023 exploits, Aditi Ashok will look to rule the greens in the years to come.