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Having won 14 titles on the international circuit, including 11 on the Asian Tour, Arjuna awardee golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar is one of the six international winners being signed by the Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL) for the maiden season of the league. With the maiden event of the league starting at Chandigarh Golf Club on Wednesday, the three-round event will see a mixed field of men and women golfers competing on the 7,202-yard-long course for three days. Bhullar, who was once ranked 85th in the world, will be playing in the 10-event league this season and believes that the new league can be a path changer for Indian golf.
“It’s a new format on the Indian golf scene with no cut and three rounds of golf ensuring that everyone gets a share of prize money. Apart from providing 10 tournaments this season, the IGPL will also see women golfers competing along with men golfers, and I believe it will strengthen the game further in the country. With a lot of youngsters signing up for the league, they too will be mentored by the likes of me as well as other international winners. We all are looking forward to the league,” said Bhullar while speaking to The Indian Express.
With the inaugural leg of the league at Chandigarh, a Rs 1.5-crore prize purse tournament, seeing the presence of 54 players — 38 men, 10 women and six amateur golfers — it will be a mix of experience as well as youth. Gaurav Ghei, 56, who was the first Indian player to play at The Open, one of the majors, too will be playing in the inaugural leg of the league at Chandigarh and the professional golfer believes the league will also help Indian golfers for the international tours as well as competitive schedule in the golfing calendar every year. “There is no cut and it means that every golfer plays three rounds of golf. So be it professional as well as amateur golfers, all will play the three rounds, one each of the 11 tournaments in the league. With some of the top women professional golfers playing in the league, it will mean that they can play in a professional league apart from the Women’s Golf Association of India (WGAI) events, which will only promote young talent,” said Ghei.
The inaugural season of the league will see a total of 10 tournaments with the Chandigarh event to be followed by tournaments in Greater Noida, Pune, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Jamshedpur, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Dubai and Colombo. While Bhullar and Ghei along with youngster Kartik Singh and Veer Ganapathy will be among the key players during the Chandigarh event, women golfers like Amandeep Drall, Neha Tripathi, Seher Atwal, Jasmine Shekhar and Heena Kang too will be in contention.
Tripathi, 33, who played on the European tour last year, too believes the league is pivotal for the women golfers in the country. “Playing in three rounds in a field consisting of men too will only encourage us to give our best. The three-round format along with 11 tournaments this season also makes sure that women golfers have more events to look forward to. The prize money is five-six times more than the WGAI tour and all 10 of the woman golfers are excited to give their best in the league,” said Tripathi, who has also played in Ladies European Tour.
The league, which is also co-sanctioned by WGAI, Indian Golf Union and Professional Golfers Association of India, will also offer the IGPL players a chance to compete in the Asian Tour joint sanctioned tournament at Kensville Golf Resort, Ahmedabad, from November 27 to 30. The Asian Tour has also granted four spots for the top four players after the culmination of the league for direct entry into Asian Tour Qualifying School finals. “Our aim is to make golf grow further and to make every player in the league earn experience as well as money. Hence the no cut three-round format in the league. All the 10 events in the league will offer Rs 1.5 crore and the final two legs will offer the golfers a chance to play in Colombo and Dubai,” said IGPL chief executive officer Uttam Singh Mundy.
The Chandigarh leg will see six amateurs in the form of former Indian player and co-founder of the league Yuvraj Singh, youngster Harjai Milkha Singh, son of 21-time international winner Jeev Milkha Singh and Zoravar Sandhu, son of multiple international winner Jyoti Randhawa, apart from India’s reigning All India Amateur champion Mannat Brar and two others. “Chandigarh Golf Club is pleased to host the inaugural event of the IGPL. The course is in fine condition and as always, the golfers will enjoy playing here. Golfers like Gaganjeet Bhullar play at this course regularly apart from others too and we are ready to provide them a memorable tournament here,” said Ravibir Singh Grewal, president, Chandigarh Golf Club.
Gaganjeet Bhullar said that he had donated 1,00,000 US dollars to one of the NGOs through the Gaganjeet Bhullar Foundation to help the flood victims in Punjab. Chandigarh golfer Aadil Bedi, who is also part of IGPL, said that he will donate his earnings from the first leg of IGPL at Chandigarh to the Virat Kohli Foundation and the Punjab CM Flood Relief Fund.
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