Gaganjeet Bhullar
| Gaganjeet Bhullar | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Gaganjeet Singh Bhullar | ||
| Born | 27 April 1988 Amritsar, Punjab, India | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||
| Sporting nationality |  India | ||
| Residence | Kapurthala, India | ||
| Career | |||
| Turned professional | 2006 | ||
| Current tour(s) | Asian Tour Professional Golf Tour of India | ||
| Former tour(s) | European Tour | ||
| Professional wins | 25 | ||
| Highest ranking | 85 (17 March 2013)[1] | ||
| Number of wins by tour | |||
| European Tour | 1 | ||
| Asian Tour | 11 (3rd all-time) | ||
| PGA Tour of Australasia | 1 | ||
| Challenge Tour | 1 | ||
| Other | 14 | ||
| Best results in major championships | |||
| Masters Tournament | DNP | ||
| PGA Championship | DNP | ||
| U.S. Open | DNP | ||
| The Open Championship | CUT: 2009 | ||
| Achievements and awards | |||
| |||
Medal record | |||
Gaganjeet Singh Bhullar (born 27 April 1988) is an Indian professional golfer who plays on the Asian Tour. He was awarded Arjuna Award in 2013.[2]
Amateur career
Bhullar was born to Sikh parents in Kapurthala, India. He was India's number one amateur in 2004 and 2006 and was part of the Indian team that won the silver medal at the 2006 Asian Games. He finished in a tie for seventh in the individual competition. Bhullar turned professional in 2006.
Professional career
2006-2008
Bhullar started his professional career on the Professional Golf Tour of India where he has yet to miss a cut. He played in seven events in the 2006-07 season and never finished lower than T-18. He also recorded three top ten finishes, including two runners-up. He finished fifth on the tour's Order of Merit list. In 2007-08, he played in 14 events and recorded 10 top-10 finishes, including three runners-up. For the second year in a row, he finished in fifth on the Order of Merit. 2009 has been Bhullar's most successful year on tour but he has played in fewer tournaments due to his concentration on the Asian Tour. Bhullar has won three of the four tournaments he has played in. He won the PGTI Players Championship at Panchkula Golf Club in March, his first professional victory. He also won the PGTI Players Championship presented by Rambagh Golf Club and the PGTI Players Championship presented by Aamby Valley Golf Club in back to back weeks in May. He finished in a tie for second at the SAIL Open which was co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour.
Bhullar began his career on the Asian Tour in 2007. He played in nine events, making seven cuts while recording a runner up finish at the Indonesia President Invitational. He finished in 77th on the Order of Merit with $52,413. 2008 was Bhullar's first full season on the Asian Tour. He played in 21 events, making 14 cuts while recording one top-10 finish. He didn't secure his tour card for 2009 until the second to last tournament of the year, when he finished T-11 at the Johnnie Walker Cambodian Open. Bhullar entered the tournament in 67th on the Order of Merit, needing to finish in the top 65 to earn his tour card for 2009. Neven Basic, who was in 65th, missed the cut so on the final day of the event it was a battle between Bhullar and Adam Groom, who was in 66th. Bhullar entered the day three shots behind Groom but shot the best round of the day (64) while Groom shot a 75. The combination of Bhullar's eight under round and Groom's poor performance put Bhullar into 65th, only $681 ahead of Groom.[3]
2009
Bhullar's 2009 season started out slow but eventually picked up. Between March and July, Bhullar made four of six cuts, finishing in the top-10 four times. He recorded a runner up finish at the SAIL Open and recorded his first victory on the Asian Tour in July at the Indonesia President Invitational. The victory catapulted him into 10th on the Order of Merit and he jumped from 417 to 255 in the Official World Golf Rankings.[4] The victory also makes Bhullar the youngest Indian to win on the Asian Tour and gives him exempt status on the Asian Tour until 2011.[5]
The week before his win in Indonesia, Bhullar played in his first major at the 2009 Open Championship. He qualified for the Open by winning the Asian International Final Qualifying in April.[6] Bhullar put himself into position to make the cut after the first round, shooting a 71 (+1) which put him in a tie for fifteenth but his second round of 77 (+7) saw him miss the cut by four strokes. Bhullar is the youngest Indian to play in a major.
One week after his win in Indonesia, Bhullar almost picked up his second win on the Asian Tour at the Brunei Open. On the 72nd hole of the tournament he had an eight-foot birdie putt to win the tournament but he missed it. He went into a playoff with Darren Beck and Boonchu Ruangkit. Boonchu was eliminated after bogeying the second hole and Beck won the tournament on the third hole when he scored a birdie while Bhullar made par.[7] The runner-up finish helped him jump from 255 to 203rd in the Official World Golf Rankings. He ended up finishing the year 6th on the Order of Merit.
Bhullar picked up his fourth win on the Professional Golf Tour of India at the PGTI Players Championship presented by Eagleton. The win elevated him to first on the tour's Order of Merit.[8] But the very next week, Mukesh Kumar won his 3rd event of the season, replacing Bhullar at the top of the Order of Merit. His 5th win of the season came in September at the DLF Masters, winning by 5 strokes. The victory launched Bhullar to first on the Order of Merit but he finished the year in 5th. Bhullar played in the fewest events out of anyone in the top 25, a stat which greatly contributed to his 5th-place finish.
2010
Bhullar represented Asia for the 2010 Royal Trophy where Europe pulled out a narrow victory. Bhullar picked up his first victory on the Asian Tour in February at the Asian Tour International. Bhullar was six strokes behind the leader going into the final round but shot a 64 (-8) to win the event by one stroke. Bhullar's superb round set a new course record at Suwan Golf and Country Club.[9] The victory launched him from 174th to 115th in the Official World Golf Rankings, his highest ranking to date. Two months later, Bhullar finished in sixth at the SAIL Open in his home country.
Bhullar won his sixth title on the Professional Golf Tour of India at the PGTI Players Championship in May. Bhullar recorded two triple bogeys on the front nine during round three but made a fantastic recovery in the last 27 holes to win the tournament. On the back nine in the third round he shot six under and then shot a 6 under in the final round to secure the championship.[10] He finished the year 8th in the ROLEX Rankings with five top ten finishes in seven events and no missed cuts.[11]
Bhullar received a special invitation to play in the Japan PGA Championship due to his consistent performances in India and Asia.[12] He missed the cut after shooting an 80 in the second round. In his first European Tour event of the year, Bhullar finished tied for 30th in the Estoril Open de Portugal. Later in the month, he played in two tour events in India, finishing tied for third and tied for twelfth. Bhullar continued his success on the Asian Tour in July with a fourth-place finish at the Brunei Open. In September, Bhullar notched another top ten finish at the Handa Singapore Classic where he finished in a tie for 8th. Bhullar finished the year 17th on the Order of Merit, earning $165,225. He recorded four top ten finishes and only missed two cuts in 14 events.
2011
In January 2011 Bhullar won the inaugural Gujarat Kensville Challenge to become the first Indian player to win a tournament on the Challenge Tour,[13] the official development tour organised by the PGA European Tour.
On 29 January, Bhullar won the Bangladesh Open on the Professional Golf Tour of India, thanks to a 64 (-8) in the third round, the best round of the tournament by two strokes.[14] The following week he won the PGTI Players Championship in similar fashion, shooting the best round of the tournament in the third round, 65 (-7). This is the second time in his career that he has won back to back tournaments on the PGTI. On 5 March he won his third PGTI event of the year at the Aircel PGTI Players Championship.
2012
Bhullar won the Yeangder Tournament Players Championship on 17 September 2012.[15] The following month he won the Venetian Macau Open.[16]
2013
Bhullar's 2013 season started on good note. In March, Bhullar finished runner-up at Avantha Masters, earning him prize money of $258,700. He scored 20-under 268, but lost to South African Thomas Aiken by three strokes.[17]
In August, he became seventh golfer to receive the Arjuna Award since its introduction in 1961.[2]
Later in December, he won his fifth Asian Tour title with the victory at Indonesia Open. He defeated Malaysian Nicholas Fung and Chapchai Nirat from Thailand.[18] His first tournament win of the season pushed him up to fourth place on the Asian Tour's Order of Merit. The win improved Bhullar's chances to qualify for the Ryder Cup-styled EurAsia Cup where the top four Asian players at the end of the 2013 season qualify for Team Asia.[19]
2014–2018
In 2014, Bhullar played a full season on the European Tour, where his best result of tied-10th came at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in January. In 2015, Bhullar played a full season on the Asian Tour with a tied-10th at Philippine Open as his best result of the season. In 2016, Bhullar added two more wins on the Asian Tour: Shinhan Donghae Open in September and Bank BRI-JCB Indonesia Open in November, helping him finish 9th on the Order of Merit. In 2017, Bhullar once again won on the Asian Tour at the Macao Open in October and finished runner-up at the Thailand Open in May. He also had two more top-10 finishes to the season. In 2018, Bhullar's big moment came with a win at the Fiji International in August, his first European Tour victory. The win catapulted him once again to the European Tour, where he has been playing since 2019.
2019–present
In March 2019, Bhullar finished fifth at the Kenya Open for his best result of the season. The COVID-19 pandemic shortened his season in 2020. In the 2021 season, he finished joint runner-up at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters in March.
Amateur wins
- 2005 World Junior Masters Championship
Professional wins (25)
European Tour wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 Aug 2018 | Fiji International1 | −14 (70-69-69-66=274) | 1 stroke |  Anthony Quayle
|
1Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the PGA Tour of Australasia
Asian Tour wins (11)
| Legend |
|---|
| International Series (1) |
| Other Asian Tour (10) |
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 Jul 2009 | Indonesia President Invitational | −22 (69-68-62-67=266) | 2 strokes | Adam Blyth
|
| 2 | 7 Feb 2010 | Asian Tour International | −11 (71-71-71-64=277) | 1 stroke |  Hwang Inn-choon
|
| 3 | 16 Sep 2012 | Yeangder Tournament Players Championship | −12 (66-69-69=204)* | 4 strokes |  Jason Knutzon,  Thaworn Wiratchant
|
| 4 | 14 Oct 2012 | Venetian Macau Open | −16 (63-68-69-68=268) | 2 strokes | Jonathan Moore
|
| 5 | 1 Dec 2013 | Indonesia Open | −16 (64-67-69-68=268) | 3 strokes |  Nicholas Fung, Chapchai Nirat
|
| 6 | 2 Oct 2016 | Shinhan Donghae Open1 | −15 (68-66-68-67=269) | 1 stroke |  Kim Tae-woo,  Scott Vincent
|
| 7 | 21 Nov 2016 | Bank BRI-JCB Indonesia Open (2) | −16 (71-65-68-68=272) | 3 strokes | Danthai Boonma, Panuphol Pittayarat, Jeev Milkha Singh, Johannes Veerman
|
| 8 | 22 Oct 2017 | Macao Open (2) | −13 (64-65-74-68=271) | 3 strokes |  Angelo Que, Ajeetesh Sandhu
|
| 9 | 5 Aug 2018 | Fiji International2 | −14 (70-69-69-66=274) | 1 stroke | Anthony Quayle
|
| 10 | 7 Aug 2022 | Mandiri Indonesia Open (3) | −20 (68-67-68-65=268) | 2 strokes | Rashid Khan,  Steve Lewton
|
| 11 | 19 Nov 2023 | BNI Indonesian Masters | −24 (63-67-63-67=260) | 5 strokes | Karandeep Kochhar
|
*Note: The 2012 Yeangder Tournament Players Championship was shortened to 54 holes due to weather.
1Co-sanctioned by the Korean Tour
2Co-sanctioned by the European Tour and the PGA Tour of Australasia
Asian Tour playoff record (0–2)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponents | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2009 | Brunei Open | Darren Beck, Boonchu Ruangkit
|
Beck won with birdie on third extra hole Ruangkit eliminated by par on second hole |
| 2 | 2018 | GS Caltex Maekyung Open | Chang Yi-keun, Hwang Jung-gon, Park Sang-hyun
|
Park won with par on third extra hole Hwang eliminated by birdie on second hole Bhullar eliminated by par on first hole |
Challenge Tour wins (1)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 Jan 2011 | Gujarat Kensville Challenge1 | −5 (70-70-68-75=283) | 1 stroke | Matt Ford
|
1Co-sanctioned by the Professional Golf Tour of India
Professional Golf Tour of India wins (14)
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 Mar 2009 | PGTI Players Championship (Panchkula) | −19 (65-73-66-65=269) | 7 strokes | Vijay Kumar, Harendra Gupta
|
| 2 | 2 May 2009 | PGTI Players Championship (Rambagh) | −10 (73-67-65-65=270) | Playoff | Himmat Rai
|
| 3 | 9 May 2009 | PGTI Players Championship (Aamby Valley) | −21 (66-67-66-68=267) | 10 strokes | Harmeet Kahlon
|
| 4 | 15 Aug 2009 | PGTI Players Championship (Eagleton) | −13 (68-69-69-69=275) | 5 strokes | Raju Ali Mollah
|
| 5 | 20 Sep 2009 | DLF Masters | −15 (68-68-69-68=273) | 5 strokes | Anirban Lahiri
|
| 6 | 7 May 2010 | PGTI Players Championship (Bombay Presidency) | −7 (66-71-70-66=273) | 1 stroke | Shamim Khan,  Siddikur Rahman
|
| 7 | 16 Jan 2011 | Gujarat Kensville Challenge1 | −5 (70-70-68-75=283) | 1 stroke | Matt Ford
|
| 8 | 29 Jan 2011 | American Express Bangladesh Open | −14 (68-71-64-71=274) | 2 strokes | Siddikur Rahman
|
| 9 | 5 Feb 2011 | PGTI Players Championship (Royal Calcutta) | −13 (69-69-65-72=275) | 2 strokes | Shiv Chawrasia
|
| 10 | 5 Mar 2011 | Aircel PGTI Players Championship (Chandigarh) | −11 (67-70-72-68=277) | 2 strokes | Shankar Das, Chiragh Kumar, Vijay Kumar
|
| 11 | 20 Dec 2020 | Tata Steel Tour Championship | −24 (69-63-64-68=264) | 2 strokes | S. Chikkarangappa
|
| 12 | 16 Oct 2022 | Jeev Milkha Singh Invitational | −15 (69-65-68-71=273) | 1 stroke | Karandeep Kochhar
|
| 13 | 24 Dec 2023 | Tata Steel Tour Championship (2) | −25 (64-66-67-66=263) | 1 stroke | Rahil Gangjee
|
| 14 | 6 Apr 2024 | Chandigarh Open | −21 (67-67-65-68=267) | 4 strokes | Angad Cheema
|
1Co-sanctioned by the Challenge Tour
Results in major championships
| Tournament | 2009 |
|---|---|
| The Open Championship | CUT |
Note: Bhullar only played in The Open Championship.
CUT = missed the half-way cut
Results in World Golf Championships
Results not in chronological order before 2015.
| Tournament | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Championship | ||||||||||
| Match Play | ||||||||||
| Invitational | ||||||||||
| Champions | T74 | T63 | T46 |
"T" = tied
Team appearances
Amateur
- Eisenhower Trophy (representing India): 2006
Professional
- Royal Trophy (representing Asia): 2010
- World Cup (representing India): 2013, 2018
- EurAsia Cup (representing Asia): 2014
See also
References
- ^ "Week 11 2013 Ending 17 Mar 2013" (pdf). OWGR. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
- ^ a b "Gaganjeet Bhullar becomes seventh golfer to receive Arjuna". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
- ^ "Bhullar secures tour card for 2009 in dramatic fashion". Archived from the original on 17 December 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ^ "Bhullar Comes of Age". Archived from the original on 23 February 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2009.
- ^ Gaganjeet Bhullar Wins Maiden Asian Tour Title in Jakarta[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Bhullar Realises Dream". Archived from the original on 6 April 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2009.
- ^ Beck Lifts Maiden Title Archived 23 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Gaganjeet Bhullar wins PGTI Players Championship presented by Eagleton – The Golf Resort[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Brilliant Bhullar". Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2010.
- ^ Gaganjeet Bhullar Edges Out Rivals on the Final Stretch[permanent dead link]
- ^ "2010 Rolex Rankings". Archived from the original on 27 August 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2011.
- ^ Gaganjeet Bhullar Invited to Japan PGA Championship[permanent dead link]
- ^ Bezbaruah, Ajit (17 January 2011). "Bhullar creates golfing history". The Times of India. Times News Network. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 25 January 2011.
- ^ Bangladesh Open Scores Archived 8 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ "Gaganjeet Bhullar wins Yeangder Tournament Players Championship". The Times Of India. 17 September 2012. Archived from the original on 18 September 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
- ^ "Bhullar wins Venetian Macau Open". Fox News. 14 October 2012. Archived from the original on 18 March 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2012.
- ^ "Thomas Aiken wins Avantha Masters, Gaganjeet Bhullar signs off 2nd". NDTV. Archived from the original on 24 January 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
- ^ "Gutsy Bhullar seals Indonesia Open title". Archived from the original on 5 December 2013. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
- ^ "Bhullar eyes EurAsia Cup place". Archived from the original on 18 February 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
External links
- Gaganjeet Bhullar at the Asian Tour official site
- Gaganjeet Bhullar at the European Tour official site
- Gaganjeet Bhullar at the Official World Golf Ranking official site
- Profile on the Indian Tour's official site