GOLF: Sad Deepavali for Murthy

As published in Sunday Mail


Murthy looks at the ruins of his house. - Picture by Azneal Ishak (Malay Mail)




By R.Loheswar

KUALA LUMPUR — It will not be a Happy Deepavali for golfer S. Murthy as he woke to news of his house having burnt down in the early hours of Thursday.

Murthy was playing in the Perlis Closed which began on Wednesday. He carded a 76 and looked in good nick to make the cut.

When he awoke at 6.30am on Thursday he saw he had more than 40 missed calls.

“I immediately called my sister and she said the house had caught fire in the wee hours of the morning,” said a dejected Murthy, who represented Malaysia from 1990 to1996.

 “We (Murthy and his wife) immediately drove back to Banting.” 

The source of the fire is unknown but early indications are a faulty socket might have been the cause.

No one was hurt, but Murthy’s father Somasundaram Sadayan, 69, was in the house — a single-storey terrace behind Banting hospital — before the fire broke out. 

Somasundaram wasn’t feeling and moved to his daughter’s house that night.

At 4am, neighbours saw smoke billowing out the windows and called the fire department. No other houses were affected by the blaze. Unfortunately for Murthy, his house insurance does not cover damages by fire.

“I bought the house in 1999 on a 25-year bank loan. I managed to pay the entire sum within 12 years,” said Murthy, 45.

“According to the bank, my life coverage is still valid but once the loan was paid, it does not cover fire damage.”
Murthy earns a living playing on the golf circuits as he isn’t tied to any club as a touring pro or a coach.

“Between training and travelling I do not have the time to teach. Sometimes we are away for months and when we return it’s straight to training for the next tournament,” he said.

“It’s no one’s fault this fire broke out, it was just a freak accident.,” added Murthy.

“I’ll have to save money and rebuild my house. As you can see, everything’s gone.”
The estimated loss is RM250,000. 

Among the valuables were his trophies, certificates of participation from the various tournaments and jewellery. 

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