By Avenash Ramzan
After being away from the golf course for more than a year, two-time Guyana Open champion Dr. Joaan Deo made a return to the greens and fairways about two months ago.
It was a deliberate move to hit the course and get back in the groove, as plans were afoot by the Lusignan Golf Club to have the Guyana Open this year after the COVID-19 pandemic meant there was no such competition in 2020.
With the Guyana Open set for this weekend, Joaan feels she in now in the best shape ever, having put in significant work over the past eight weeks to hit peak condition in time for the prestigious two-day tournament.
Being a Dental Surgeon means having “a packed schedule” and Joann has had to balance work and practice/tournament time since dusting off the Clubs.
She has done that quite successfully by sticking to a rigid schedule that includes early morning and late afternoon practice sessions three to four times per week.
“Preparations have been good,” Joaan, who won her maiden Guyana Open title in 2014 and repeated the success two years later, told News Room Sport on Wednesday.
“The only this is, I should have started a tad earlier. I’ve been doing early morning sessions and I feel good, especially about my Gross scores coming into the Open.”
The Ladies category will be determined by the Best Gross score, and Joaan would be up against stiff competition from the likes of Guyana’s most successful female golfer and multiple-time Guyana Open champion Christine Sukhram, reigning champion Julia Stephenson of Barbados, the ever-improving Shanella London, Anasha Ally and Eureka Giddings.
Joaan indicated that she been making a concerted effort to lower her Gross, and it’s all coming together nicely just days ahead of tee-off.
“I think I’ve finally found back my swing. This is the week I feel more confident than ever. I played three days in a row and all my scores I had while practicing I was quite satisfied with them,” she related.
“I think the key to doing well (in the Guyana Open) is to focus on my game rather than having to worry about all the other female players who are competing. It might be difficult since we might be playing in the same group, but I think the key is to just focus on my game.”
“I think I have a very good chance of taking back the title. This week especially I would have found back my swing, my rhythm and my timing, so my shots have been particularly good for the last week and I’m very confident.”
As of Wednesday afternoon 74 golfers, including two dozen from overseas, had registered to compete in the Guyana Open.
Ten-time champion Avinash Persaud is the defending champion of the male category.
