Jeev Milkha Singh

Son of Olympic athlete , Milkha Singh ( Flying Sikh ) and former captain of the Indian women’s volleyball team , Nirmal Kaur , Jeev Milkha Singh is a famous Punjabi golfer . Jeev Milkha Singh was born in Chandigarh , Punjab on 15 December 1971 . He is one of the most successful Punjabi golfers in the history of the sport . Jeev Milkha Singh is one of the most highly ranked Indian golfers ever. Singh started golfing at a very young age and loved the sport . He won his first amateur tournament , American Express Championship in Delhi , at just 13 years of age . Jeev Milkha Singh thereafter worked on his skills and the learnt the sport inside-out . Concurrently he was studying like any other normal kid of his age . Later on Singh attended college in the united states at Abilene Christian University where he acquired his Degree in Business and International studies in 1996 . It was during his years in U.S that Jeev Milkha Singh got more involved with the sports and won several amateur level competitions . One of the major tournament which he won at amateur level was , NCAA Division II individual golf championship alongside Abilene Christian in 1993 . The same year Singh turned professional and won his first game at the 1993 Southern Oklahoma State Open . In the mid 1990s , he mainly played in Asia where he was a regular winner . Also since then he has been a regular feature in Asian PGA Tour and has bagged a number of major competitions . Some of his wind in the mid 1990s include Bukit Kaira Golf Championship (1993,Malaysia) , Shinhan Donghae Open ( 1994 ,South Korea ) , Northern Indian Open ( 1994 ) , Thailand PGA Championship ( 1995 ) , Mahindra BPGC Open ( 1995,India ) , Philippine Classic ( 1995 ) , Asian Matchplay Championship ( 1995 ) and Philip Morris Asia Cup ( 1996 ) . Prior to 1997 , Jeev Milkha Singh made 7 starts in European Tour and thereafter joined the tour the following year. In 1999 , Singh came 50th on the Order of Merit . This was the beginning of the peak of his career . He finished 2006 as the winner of the Asian Tour Order of Merit and capped his season with a pair of back to back wins in Japan to become the first Indian to make the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking. In 2007 he became the first Indian golfer to participate in the Masters Tournament. He also received India’s fourth highest civil honor , ‘Padamshri’ , in 2007 . In August 2008, Singh achieved the highest ranking for an Indian in any major event at the 2008 PGA Championship in Oakland Hills, finishing at T9, making him arguably India’s best golfer ever. Jeev Milkha Singh is a regular in the European Tour and has participated in all the European tours from 1999 right up to the 2013 European Tour . Out of these he has been 3rd in 2 tournaments , runner up in 3 tournaments and winner in 4 tournaments . Apart from participating in European Tour championships , Singh has won several cups with teams including Dynasty Cup ( 2003 ,Representing Rest of Asia ) and Royal Trophy ( 2007, 2010, 2011, 2012 ,representing Asia ) . He also made team appearances for World Cup ( 2008, 2009 representing India ) . With career earnings of well over €20 million , Jeev Milkha Singh is one of the most decorated Indian golfers ever . Currently he resides in Chandigarh with his wife , Kudarat and continues to play the grand sport .