From caddie to top golfer

Shabbir has been ruling the golf courses in Pakistan for about 20 years

The golf courses in Pakistan have been ruled by Muhammad Shabbir for the last two decades. With a career that began at the Islamabad Golf Club in 1990, the man quickly rose to the top and firmly held that position.

“I started working as a daily wager at the Islamabad Golf Club when I was quite young,” he shared while talking to Bol News. “Initially, I was a ball boy and then I became a caddie. I barely made Rs10 every day, but I loved going there. Then a few years later, I played my first game as a caddie player. The man I played against saw my talent and encouraged me to continue playing.”

Three years after getting exposure to a golf course, Shabbir won his first caddie tournament and was rewarded with a cash prize of Rs3,500. He used the sum to buy his first golf clubs.

“I asked my father for an additional 500 so that I could buy golf clubs. Before that, I used to play with borrowed clubs,” he recalled. “Life as a player rising from the bottom is not easy. I was a caddie for three to four years and I was one of the lucky ones,” Shabbir said.

Shabbir feels he did not have anything special in him, it was just his sheer hard work and his parents’ wishes that took him a long way.

“I do not believe I have any special talent. I firmly believe I was able to achieve what I have achieved and retain my position because of my parents’ duas and Allah’s blessing,” he said. “I still practice my craft for five to six hours, at least five days a week.”

The golfer, who served Navy for 15 years after a fellow player recognised his potential and helped his recruitment, has not looked back ever since. He has ended up on a podium on 198 occasions and it is just a matter of time before he completes his double century.

“I knew nothing about the game when I first started playing, I had no guidance, I only learned as I played the sport,” he maintained.

Shabbir has not only played at the national level, but he has also represented the country on the international stage, competing in Asian Championship and World Cup.

“I stood seventh in an Asian championship in Malaysia out of 600 people,” he reminisced. “I have also gone to the golf World Cup a couple of times but honestly, it is very hard to compete at that level without any sponsors, government support and tools of the game.”

He believes that the international arena is totally different, the courses are different, and the way people play and conduct themselves is different. Like many other local athletes, he feels if players have to only concentrate on their craft, they can do better on the field. “It is nearly impossible for a player to perform well while constantly being worried about finances,” he stated.

Shabbir complained that despite being the best golf player in the country for over 20 years, he has not received much recognition, adding that cricketers in this country are celebrated after barely doing anything significant.

“Cricketers barely doing anything and being recognised for their efforts and then I see myself with no accolade to my name, of course, it hurts,” Shabbir said. “I have played alongside numerous influential people from the army, the government and the bureaucracy, they all appreciated me verbally but no one did anything worthwhile. Of course, it makes me sad.”

Despite being a star player in the local circuit and representing Pakistan internationally, he still does not have any sponsors.

“It is the golf federation’s job to ensure that players get the due support and respect within the country and send their best performers to participate in international events,” he highlighted.

Golf is often regarded as the sport of the elite social class. Shabbir does not shrug off this perception, in fact, he revealed that being a caddie player will never get him the respect he deserves.

“The class system is so ingrained in the game that a caddie player, who is now a pro, is not allowed to sit in the clubhouse or use the club facilities,” he claimed. “I recently became a player of the Islamabad Golf Club, and now can use their facilities but before that, even though I was the top national player for years, I could not use the club’s facilities as I did not have a membership.”

Meanwhile, Shabbir’s children are proud of what their father has achieved and want to replicate his success. However, having been ignored for about two decades and not getting the kind of love and respect he deserved, he does not want his kids to follow in his footsteps.

“My children are inclined towards the sport but I am not too encouraging as I do not see any future for them here,” he said. “Even in my time, after all my struggles, I was able to get to the top based purely on talent, but that is not the case now.

“Everything has been commercialised and money is required at every step now. Caddie players’ journey is even tougher now, so of course, I want to shield them from heartbreak.”

With everything discouraging around him, he still hopes and dreams to represent Pakistan internationally.

“I wish [one day] I will have the means and the support required to play internationally and then I will make my country proud,” he said.

Shabbir feels if had been supported in the right manner, he would have been among the top ten golfers in the world, which would have been huge for Pakistan.

“I feel sad that my talent has been wasted in all these years because had I played at the highest level properly, I would have at least reached the top-10 players in the world,” he said. “However, I believe it is not too late and if given a chance, I would still love to represent Pakistan on the international stage and put the country on the golf map.”