Gaganjeet Bhullar Let me begin by stating that I made history today. History in my own books that is. This is the first ever time in a seven-year career in professional golf that I went through a birdie-free round. I can assure you it isnt the best feeling in the world. I finished with a disappointing five-over 77 and I need to do a lot of work tomorrow. There were some really good scores up there with a bunch of people at six-under and that includes Rahil Gangjee alongside Siddikur and former champion Mardan Mamat and a couple of others. The Indian contingent has had a decent outing with Shankar Das (67),Shamim Khan (68) and then the trio of SSP (Chowrasia),Chiragh,and Rashid Khan at 69 each. So dont be surprised if an Indian is up there receiving the Trophy at the 50th edition and there will surely be more than Indian in contention. Coming back to my round,the surprising thing about today was that I hit the ball really well. Right from when I teed it up on the tenth,I started hitting fairways with tremendous precision. The feeling was good and I felt something big was coming up. This is golf for you. It teaches you several lessons,one of them being humility. Youre never bigger than the game. What I would take heart from is my attitude through todays round. I was positive all along despite things not going my way. I plan to continue with this mindset through tomorrows round as well. There are clearly some things one doing right this season if a third place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit is any indicator. The past two weeks have seen me compete in the CIMB Classic and the WCG HSBC Champions,both PGA Tour sanctioned events. It was great playing with and against the likes of Sergio Garcia and Bubba Watson. That made me believe I belonged there. Considering this,I couldnt be more prepared physically and mentally to return a really low score to make the cut at the Hero Indian Open. This,being the 50th edition of the tournament,is landmark event and I for sure dont want to miss out on playing the weekend rounds. Speaking of landmarks,it was an honour receiving the Arjuna Award from the President of India earlier this year. It is heartening to see golf and golfers achievements being recognised on such a mega stage. It augurs very well for the next generation and I am confident more kids will take to playing this noble game as a result. The Pro-Am with the legendary Milkha Singh Sir was inspirational and teaches you never to give up and thats what I am going to do tomorrow. What Milkha Sir has done for athletics and sports in general is remarkable. Hopefully a golfer will do something similar for the sport in India. I would be delighted if I can.
