It may have taken longer than he imagined, but 37-year-old Jeev Milkha Singh is finally turning heads across the golf world. With a little help from Jeev’s friends, our correspondent pieces together the ups and downs of a roller-coaster journey through four continentsBy the time the world took notice, it had become a bit of a joke in golf’s inner circle. At the end of 2006, four titles and a lot of firsts later, Jeev Milkha Singh’s breaking through was one of world golf’s stories of the year: a classic coming-back-from-the-dead gut-wrencher. Finding comic relief wasn’t that hard, though. For their pre-Masters feature, Sports Illustrated got the Indian to pose perkily on a strewing of some dozen air-marked suitcases. For fellow players, Jeev’s constant continent hopping was the subject of locker-room humour.Two years, and a season that has inarguably been the peak of the almost 37-year-old’s career, later, the world-traveller tag has grown. India’s pioneer in golfing matters doesn’t just travel around the world, he wins around it. He’s not the Indian novelty in big-name tournaments anymore, he’s part of the favourites bunch.At the end of 2008, another four titles, a Major top-10 spot, a top-15 finish on the European Tour Order of Merit, a firm hold on the Asian Tour moneylist lead, and a new high of 36 in the world rankings later, it’s not the many trips that make the story. It’s the one journey, which has seen more bumps than most, more landmarks than most, and one that surely has unclocked miles beyond the clearing, the ongoing journey of Jeev Milkha Singh’s golfing career, that makes for the telling.Quick off the blocksSunny afternoons would fade into dark-blue evenings with barely a dip in concentration levels. Hating to leave the practice green a loser, Jeev would coax friends to stay on for just one more putting match. “Our matches would always go late into the nights,” laughs Amritinder Singh, part of that Chandigarh talent bunch, and one of Jeev’s oldest friends. “He refused to leave till he had won. Back then, he knew he wanted to play in America, play among the best golfers of the world.”Jeev (then called Chiranjeev) had started winning early, and for the son of India’s best-known athlete and one of its best volleyball players, nothing short was good enough. A personal invite from Abilene Christian University in America was followed by four years of honing his skills in that super-competitive nursery, and having led the college team to the national championship in 1993, he decided he was good enough and old enough for a career in his passion.He won in 1995, just his first year on the Asian Tour, then won in the next, to suddenly be where no Indian had been, and it all seemed to be coming all too easy. At the end of 1997, Jeev qualified for the European Tour, the first Indian ever. He contended, but was left runner-up way too often. Still, with four Asian Tour titles in five years, he headed into 2000 on the back of the knowledge of a solid starting round. And that’s when the roadblock sprung up, suddenly. In November, Jeev was playing out of a bunker during the second round of the Johnnie Walker Classic, and slashing the ball out, his wrist took all the impact of an awry swing. The torn ligaments threatened to put a long break in the fast, but careful build-up he had set up for himself. He decided that couldn’t be afforded, and so he kept hurting and kept playing. When he finally stopped, forced by a doctor, the four-month break seemed like years.“Those four months were just too hard on him,” says Joy Chakravarty, another friend of Jeev’s. “The wrist injury completely set him back,” agrees Amritinder.All in the mindBut if those months out were a spanner in the plans, getting back turned out to be harder than anyone ever thought. “Getting back after the injury, even if the physical wound has healed, the mind sends signals of pain to automatically protect your hand,” says Chakravarty. Amritinder, who has also helped Jeev with technical aspects, explains: “We had to change a lot of things keeping the injury in mind. We changed the shaft in the irons, so they were more receptive.”But the mind was harder to coax. He struggled to get back to his driver, the swing, never pretty, turned a little more unorthodox, keeping it all about impact rather than beautiful movement. He got back to the course and the plan, but then came more blips. In 2002, on the verge of making those boyhood dreams a reality, Jeev needed a level-par last round at the US PGA Tour Qualifying School finals to secure his card for the 2003 season. He played a 77. At the 2005 Okinawa Open in Japan, Jeev was leading by four shots on the last day, fumbled and fell away. It left him distraught. “That upset him a lot. I think the after-effects of what the injury did continued for almost two and a half years,” says Chakravarty. The heroic comeback of 2006 is part of golfing folklore. The seven-year drought ended in April, with the Asian Tour’s Volvo China title. In October he shocked a full European Tour field, taking the season-ender, before back-to-back wins on the Japan tour. That took care of a ranking jump from 367th to 37th, and a first Asian Tour’s Order of Merit crown, another first for Indian golf.“Jeev has an extremely strong work ethic. We ensured that even when he was not doing well we stuck to the routine. You must make sure that the situation never takes hold of you,” says Amritinder. Return of the SinghIt was a magical season, and luckily, Cinderella hasn’t had to leave the ball. The year 2007 was title-less, but with spots in Majors courtesy the season before, Jeev was starting to become a regular feature where it mattered. The dreamt-about Masters debut came in April, and he finished in 37th place. At the US Open, where he had made another piece of Indian history those five long years ago in 2002, he ended tied 36th. He was playing and finding his place amongst the best in the business, and more importantly, he was beginning to believe in himself. Having put it off for years with the plan that he would wait till he reached the USPGA Tour, Jeev also finally married his long-time girlfriend Kudrat. “One of the biggest changes that have come in Jeev in these past three years is his new-found maturity. Earlier, one bad shot and he would fly off the handle. It is a drastic transformation,” says Chakravarty. “And apart from the age factor, I think the main reason behind that is Kudrat. She has helped him calm down so much.”No one was surprised when Jeev eased to a win in the Bank of Austria Open in June this year, and those last-round ghosts seemed to have been buried for good. He played a level-headed, level-par round to win, while the Jeev of old could have thrown away the lead.As the rain came down on the first day at the PGA Championship, the year’s final Major, at Oakland Hills, there were a few hastily accessed player-profile pages and questioning looks as Jeev, two-under, took the clubhouse lead. He finished tied ninth.Two more titles — the first one at Singapore came with a last-minute trumping of thrice major winner Padraig Harrington and former world No 1 Ernie Els, and the latest just this past week, as he struggled with the loss of his stillborn child — and it is certain that Jeev is in the form of his life.There is the Asian Tour season-ender to go before this year is wrapped up and he receives the Order of Merit trophy. There is the delicious prospect of confirmed starts in all four Majors in 2009, giving a year to look forward to more than looking back at a year well played. Amritinder sums it up: “In 2006, he was coming out of the wilderness. He had to prove that he could still win. This year he won four titles, but came close to at least seven. He’s not worried anymore. He trusts his swing and his game. And he doesn’t have to prove anything anymore.”2 leap years, 8 titles.2006February: Volvo China Open, Beijing (co-sanctioned, Asian Tour, European Tour) — Jeev carded a two-under 70 to finish at 10-under par, one better than Spain’s Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, who also shot a final round 70 to finish at nine under. The challenge from Singh’s playing partner, overnight leader David Lynn, collapsed when the Englishman three-putted the 13th, 14th and 15th. October: Volvo Masters (European Tour), Valderrama, Spain — His biggest win at that time. Had gone into the season-ending full-field event’s last day with a one-shot lead and shot a calm level-par round. Jeev totalled two-under 282 for a one-shot win over three of Europe’s biggest names Luke Donald (69), Sergio Garcia (72) and Padraig Harrington (69). The 17th was probably where the title was decided. Garcia’s birdie on the 16th meant he had caught up with Jeev at two-under. On the 17th, Garcia missed another birdie putt. Coming one group behind, Jeev birdied the hole to get back into outright lead.November: Casio World Open (Japan tour), Kochi — Jeev beat New Zealand’s David Smail by two shots in the final round with a four-under 68. Jeev totalled 16-under 272 to take what was his first Japan tour title. Joint leader coming into the final day, the Indian made an early charge on the front nine. Smail narrowed the gap to one stroke with a birdie on 17th as Jeev saved par, but he birdied the last for the win. December: JT Cup (Japan tour), Tokyo — Jeev had raced to an early charge on Day Three with three birdies on the first three holes, to go into the last round with a four-shot lead. On the Sunday, he clinched victory with a level-par 70 for an 11-under-par total of 269. Nobuhiro Masuda came closest to a challenge, but stayed one shot too far.2008June: Bank of Austria Open (European Tour), Oberwaltersdorf — Jeev had taken a four-stroke lead into the final round, and played it perfectly safe, reeling off 18 straight pars to claim his first title in over 18 months. In the shortened, weather-hit event, his 71 took him to a three-round winning total of 15-under par 198. It was one better than Englishmen Simon Wakefield and Iain Pyman. July: Sega Sammy Cup (Japan tour), Chitose — Overnight fourth, Jeev produced his best card of the week on the final day to aggregate 13-under 275 and steal the title away from Sushi Ishigaki (72), who finished two shots behind. The score also equalled the tournament record set by Lin Keng-chi. Jeev played faultless golf, making a whopping seven birdies, three over his last four holes, for the sensational win. There was just one bogey, on the 12th hole. November: Singapore Open (Asian Tour) — It was nail-biter of a finish with Padraig Harrington and Ernie Els, both falling fractionally short of taking the tournament into a play-off. Jeev had begun the day five shots back, but three birdies on the front nine helped him to the top of the leaderboard at seven-under. Harrington missed a birdie chance on the last hole, and Els’s poor tee shot on the 18th left him with too much to do. December: Golf Nippon Series JT Cup (Japan tour), Tokyo — Starting the day one shot off the lead, Jeev, a winner here in 2006, carded a four-under 66 to clinch the title at 12-under 268. Brendan Jones (64), David Smail (66) and Taichi Teshima (68) finished second, two shots behind. Beginning the day one shot behind Prayad Marksaeng, Jeev started with three birdies on the front nine. He dropped a shot on the 13th, the only aberration as Jeev preceded and followed it with a birdie each for a winning card of 66.
