Gaganjeet Bhullar: Waiting to Take on the Biggies

Gaganjeet Bhullar | 25
Golfer
CATEGORY: SPORTS

This time last year I had set myself the goal of playing on the European Tour. A year from then, I can say I have achieved my goal,” announced Gaganjeet Bhullar earlier this year to his fans via social media. At 6-feet-1 and 83 kg, the burly 25-year-old is leading a talented pack of young Indian golfers and making a splash beyond Asia.

He picked up close to $1 million on the Asian tour in the two years from 2012 to 14 and finished fifth in Asia in both years. In December 2013 in Jakarta, he won his fifth event in the Asian Tour. But his real success is the consistency on the more prestigious European Tour, playing alongside the world’s best players. In 2012, he finished with €109,114 and a stunning second place finish at the Avantha Masters helped him end 2013 with €259,804. There was national recognition with the Arjuna Award.

He’s begun 2014 strongly. Though he finished tied-10th in Abu Dhabi after falling away from tied-second going into the final round, he can take a lot of positives from the experience nonetheless.

Bhullar comes from a sporting family; his father and mother represented India internationally in track & field and hockey, respectively. His father introduced him to golf. 

The jump from the Asian Tour to the European Tour and the US PGA Tour beyond that is immense. His powerful driving from the tee and strong putting skills should make him a major contender wherever he plays. There is no doubt he’s good enough to qualify/challenge at the Rio Olympics, says golf journalist Joy Chakravarty. “The way Olympic qualifiers are, anybody inside the top-100 of World Rankings has a great chance of making it to Rio. What I really like about him is that he is really hungry to prove himself in the big stage and he has immense self belief,” he says.

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