Danny Lee makes it official:

World No 1 amateur turns pro

Danny Lee (New Zealand), the R&A WAGR No 1, today officially announced that he has turned professional. The 18-year-old, Korean-born but a naturalised New Zealander, will be managed by IMG in a deal reportedly worth $10 million over three years. An equipment contract with Callaway, whose clubs Lee used to win both the 2008 U.S. Amateur and 2009 Johnnie Walker Classic, is expected to be finalised over the next few days.
Lee's last nine holes as an amateur were not something he will want to remember - 11-over-par 47 in the second round of the US Masters on Friday after shooting two-under-par 34 to the turn.
A SIX-putt from 12 feet at the 10th hole, and the 9 that ensued, laid the foundation for two hours of misery, a sad end to the teenager's brilliant amateur career.
By turning professional, he forfeits the spots earned as an amateur into this summer's Open and US Open. Family friend Rambert Sim says Lee will likely try to qualify for Bethpage, but not Turnberry.
Lee will make his professional debut the last week of April at the Zurich Classic in New Orleans, one of six US PGA Tour sponsor's exemptions he has already accepted. He can accept one more, as the tour limit is seven, but all other berths he will have to earn through either top-10 finishes or by earning enough money (roughly $500,000) to gain special temporary status. Of course, a win would be a simple way to bypass these exemption headaches and get his 2010 card immediately.
Anthony Knight, who caddied for Lee at this year's New Zealand Open, is to become Lee's regular bagman for the season. Knight has also caddied in the past for another of New Zealand's great players, Michael Campbell.

Corsby beats Lowry at 19th

to win West of Ireland Open

Walker Cup team contender Shane Lowry was beaten at the 19th hole by England's David Corsby in the final of the West of Ireland Open championship at Rosses Point.

Lytham & St Anne's member Corsey became the 87th winner of the championship beat Lowry, and Ireland international and the defending champion, with a birdie at the first extra hole.

Lowry, pictured right by Cal Carson Golf Agency, went two up after two with a par-birdie start. The Esker Hills player remained two up despite holing a 35ft eagle putt at the third because the Englishman followed him from slightly nearer the hole.
Corsby won the next with par before levelling the match at the sixth with a birdie. Seizing the initiative he added a further birdie at the short ninth to go one-up at the turn.
Lowry got back to all-square with a birdie of his own at the 11th.
In a thrilling match it became Corsby's turn to go ahead at the 12th when Lowry lost his ball and Corsby was in for birdie. The writing looked to be on the wall for Lowry when the Englishman went two-up with yet another birdie at the 15th.
However, Lowry stuck to his task and got one back when Corsby double-bogeyed the 17th before the Irishman took the final into at least one extra hole with a birdie at the 18th.
At the 19th, Corsby hit his approach into one foot for the easiest of birdies, while Lowry could only manage par.
It was a match of high quality, Corsby fired six birdies and an eagle at Lowry.
“I’m overwhelmed really. I’m delighted to have won something,” Corsby said afterwards. “I’ve been playing a while and haven’t really won anything. It’s a great start to the season – I couldn’t ask for better than that.”

Lowry was philosophical about his defeat. “I’m actually not too disappointed to be honest. I left a couple of putts out there in the middle of the round, and that’s what cost me towards the end. But he holed everything. I was hitting it inside him all day and then he would hole it. It was amazing,” said Lowry.
Results in later stages:

Semi-finals - Shane Lowry (Esker Hills) bt Cian Curley (Newlands) 4 and 2, David Corsby (Lytham & St Annes) bt Niall Kearney (Royal Dublin) 1 hole.

Final - Corsby bt Lowry at 19th.

Scottish Heartlands

Golf Pass provides

one-stop booking shop

An exciting new golfing product which promises to deliver great golf, wonderful accommodation and friendly service all in one package, has just been launched to coincide with the new golfing season.
Launching the Scottish Heartlands Golf Pass at Downfield, spokesman Jim Docherty of Alyth Golf Club said: "For years we have lived in the shadow of St Andrews and Carnoustie, and whilst we have benefited from the publicity and the extra visitors that these Open venues have attracted to the area, today's golfer is more discerning and is looking for value for money, a high standard of course, as well as a warm friendly environment in which to stay.
"We have specifically selected each part of the Scottish Heartlands Golf Pass to compliment each other and in this way we know that the golfer will be looked after in one comprehensive package"
Courses were chosen to provide an example of the diversity on offer in the Heartlands area. Downfield is pure parkland, Monifieth is a hybrid of links and heathland, Alyth is renowned for its views in a heathland setting, Blairgowrie Lansdowne is long and tree-lined and Scotscraig offers a little of everything.
The hotels involved:
Best Western Woodlands
Best Western Invercarse
Red House at Coupar Angus
are all sympathetic to the requirements of the golfer and are geographically located to allow those using the pass to base themselves within a short driving distance of any three courses.
The beauty of the Scottish Heartlands Golf pass is that there is never more than half an hour drive between each course, allowing ample time for two rounds in a day.
With a One Stop Booking system, all enquiries will be handled through the website http://www.heartlandsgolfpass.co.uk/ or telephone and with prices starting from just £199 for two nights and three rounds of golf, The Scottish Heartlands Golf Pass is the ideal vehicle to welcome back old friends or introduce new converts to the joys of golf in the Scottish Heartlands.
Caption for photograph above:

Downfield Golf Club professional Kenny Hutton gets ready to launch the Scottish Heartlands Golf Pass in the company of (left to right) Dawn Tinker (Golf Desk Scotland), Julie Ann Smith (Golf Desk Scotland), Gordon Whiting (Redwood Leisure), Steve McLaren (Monifieth Golf Links), Barry Liddle (Scotscraig Golf Club), Jim Docherty (Alyth Golf Club) and Pat Fraser (Redwood Leisure).

Website: http://www.heartlandsgolfpass.co.uk/

Shadbolt, Lewis, Towler are

the boys for Brazil

NEWS RELEASE ISSUE BY THE FALDO SERIES ORGANISATION
The Faldo Series 2009 has teed off with the first of its UK Championships, held at Walton Heath Golf Club.
The competition attracted some of the region’s best young golfing talent, not least of all the eventual winner, 21-year-old Tom Shadbolt, from Luton, who returned an impressive seven under-par score of 137 for 36 holes.
Tom Lewis, 18, of Welwyn Garden City, carded an identical score but Shadbolt’s lower second round of 68 gained him outright first place.
As a result of their efforts, Shadbolt and Lewis, along with the other winners from Walton Heath, will join Nick Faldo at the Grand Final in Brazil later this year, where they will have the opportunity to meet and draw inspiration from the six-time Major winner.
Winners from Walton Heath (who qualify for the Faldo Series Grand Final):
BOYS Under 21
Tom Shadbolt (Mid-Herts GC). Lives at Luton. Age 21. Handicap +1.7. Total: 69 68: 137 (-7).
BOYS Under-18
Tom Lewis (Welwyn Garden City GC). Lives at Welwyn. Age 18. Handicap +2.1. Total: 137 (-7)
BOYS Under-16
Sam Towler (Letchworth GC). Lives at Letchworth. Age 15. Handicap 5.1. Total: 150 (+6).
GIRLS Under-21
Raffi Dyer (Hayling Island GC). Lives at Swanmore. Age 18. Handicap 0.8. Total: 154.
GIRLS Under-16
Daisy Kenny (Cuddington GC). Lives at Purley. Age 15. Handicap 4.9. Total: 170.
For more information on the Faldo Series visit http://www.nickfaldo.com/

Craigmillar Park victory lifts

Gavin Dear to 33 in rankings

Craigmillar Park Open winner Gavin Dear from Scone has improved seven places in the R&A World Amateur Rankings with his victory in the weekend 72-hole event at the Edinburgh venue. Murrayshall member Gavin is now No 33. The only other Scottish player in the top 100 is Wallace Booth (Comrie) in 60th position, a drop of three places from last week.
After his victory on Sunday, his first in a 72-hole tournament, 24-year-old Dear, pictured right, said he would be turning professional in late September but before then he had two targets.
"I want to make the Walker Cup team (for the match at Merion, Pennsylvania, September 12-13) and I want to get into the top 10 of the world amateur rankings before I leave the amateur ranks," said Dear.
"At 24, I cannot delay much longer than this year so I will be entering the European Tour School qualifying process. Even if I don't make it through that, I will still turn pro and go to some of the satellite tours in the States.
"I spent four years at Lynn University, Boca Ration in Florida so I have a lot of contacts out there. I won't stick."
This week's R&A World Amateur Golf Rankings:
1 Danny Lee (NZ), 2 Scott Arnold (Aus), 3 Jorge Campillo (Spa), 4 Stephan Gross (Ger), 5 Morgan Hoffman (US), 6 Sam Hutsby (Eng), 7 Rickie Fowler (US), 8 Reinier Saxton (Net) 9 Nick Taylor (Can), 10 Mike Van Sickle (US).
The WAGR will play an important part in the selection of the GB&I team for the Walker Cup match so we have listed all the Scottish, England, Welsh and Irish players in the top 200:
19 Shane Lowry (Ire), 23 Chris Paisley (Eng), 33 Gavin Dear (Sco), 34 Luke Goddard (Eng), 43 Tom Sherreard (Eng).
60 Wallace Booth (Sco), 63 Dale Whitnell (Eng), 78 Seamus Power (Ire), 89 Tommy Fleetwood (Eng), 92 Todd Adcock (Eng), 93 Matt Haines (Eng), 94 Charles Ford (Eng).
102 Steven McEwan (Sco), 103 Rhys Enoch (Wal), 113 Niall Kearney (Ire), 115 Paul Cutler (Ire), 137 Steven Uzell (Eng), 138 Ross Kellett (Sco), 143 Simon Ward (Ire).
156 Jamie Abbott (Eng), 163 Stiggy Hodgson (Eng), 180 Paul O'Hara (Sco), 183 Jake Amos (Eng), 184 Matthew Nixon (Eng), 185 Ben Rickett (Eng), 197 Andrew Cooley (Wal), 198 James Byrne (Sco).

ends

International players support bid

to make golf an Olympic sport

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY INTERNATIONAL GOLF FEDERATION
Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA (April 14, 2009) - As part of the International Golf Federation’s continuing efforts to demonstrate worldwide solidarity behind golf’s bid to become an Olympic sport in 2016, 18 of the game’s top players are sending a customised brochure detailing the bid along with a personal letter reflecting their support to International Olympic Committee members from their respective countries.
In addition, World Golf Hall of Fame members Jack Nicklaus and Annika Sorenstam, global ambassadors on behalf of the IGF’s bid, have sent the 32-page brochure and a personal letter to IOC representatives from 75 other countries. The brochure includes global data on golf participation, as well as supportive comments by the world’s leading players on behalf of the Olympic effort.
“As we have consistently stated from the outset of the bid process, it is imperative that the best players in the world support golf’s Olympic effort in order to give us the best chance of being selected by the IOC to participate in the 2016 Olympic Games,” said Peter Dawson, chief executive of The R&A and joint secretary of the IGF.
“It also is important for us to demonstrate the international nature of golf, underscoring the fact that 60 million people play the sport in nearly 120 countries. This personal outreach by international players is a continuation of that effort.”
The players who are sending this material to their respective IOC representatives are:
Karrie Webb, Australia; Mike Weir, Canada; Camilo Villegas, Colombia; Vijay Singh, Fiji; Gwladys Nocera, France; Bernhard Langer, Germany; Colin Montgomerie, Scotland; Jeev Milkha Singh, India; Padraig Harrington, Ireland; Ai Miyazato, Japan; K.J. Choi, Korea; Lorena Ochoa, Mexico; Suzann Pettersen, Norway; Ernie Els, South Africa; Sergio Garcia, Spain; Annika Sorenstam, Sweden; Yani Tseng, Chinese Taipei; and Tiger Woods, United States.
“We certainly appreciate the effort and support of these great players on behalf of golf’s Olympic bid,” said Ty Votaw, Executive Director of the IGF Olympic Golf Committee. “We obviously believe there is a very compelling case as to why golf should be reinstated as an Olympic sport, and a large reason for that is the support from top players.”
Golf last was an Olympic sport in 1904 in St. Louis, USA, when the United States and Canada were the only countries competing. The IGF, recognised as the representative body for golf by the IOC, is leading the Olympic initiative through its Olympic Golf Committee, which consists of representatives from The R&A, European Tour, USGA, PGA of America, US PGA TOUR, LPGA and the Masters Tournament.
. Player support complements the support that has been shown by 119 IGF Federations from 114 countries, the recently established IGF Professional Advisory Committee, which is made up of 17 additional men’s and women’s professional golf tours and the leading PGAs from around the world, as well as other leading golf organisations
Golf is one of seven sports being considered for inclusion, starting with the 2016 Games. The others are baseball, karate, roller sports, rugby sevens, softball and squash. The IOC's final vote on whether to add no more than two sports will take place at the 121st IOC session, scheduled for October 2009 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The host for the 2016 Games also will be determined at that time between Chicago, Madrid, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo.
Dawson and Votaw previously noted the ease with which golf would fit into any of the four finalists (venues) due to existing golf facilities in those cities.

Scottish Golf Awareness Week

Save 50 per cent of your green fees

Switch over to our sister website, www.kirkwoodgolf.co.uk, to find out how you can slash 50 per cent off your visitor's green fee at more than 70 golf clubs in Scotland.

Paul Shields' fateful first putt on 36th green of boys' final

Kirkhill's Paul Shields gets a ground-level view of a putt in the Scottish boys' championship final against David Law (Hazlehead). On the right, Paul's fateful first putt on the 36th green. He leaves it short and misses the next one to lose in the final for the second year in a row. More images by Cal Carson Golf Agency below. Click on them to enlarge.

PAUL GETS DOWN TO IT FOR PUTTING

Paul Shields (Kirkhill) believes in getting down to it for his putts. Here he displays his grass roots approach in the Scottish boys' final against David Law (Hazlehead). Images by Cal Carson Golf Agency. Click on them to enlarge.

World No 1 amateur joining Tiger Woods "stable"

Danny Lee about to turn pro

for $10million IMG deal

New Zealand's adopted golfing son Danny Lee will shortly sign a deal to mark his switch to the professional ranks after a stellar amateur career.
The reigning US Amateur champion crashed out of the Masters in Georgia at the halfway stage on Saturday but that disappointment has immediately been left behind.
International Management Group (IMG), which handles the affairs of six of the world's top 10 players, is about to sign a deal with Lee reputedly worth $US10 million.
Lee will play his first tournament as a professional at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, starting on April 23.
The 18-year-old has been on IMG's radar for a couple of years, well before he won the US Amateur last August, then became the youngest player to win a European Tour event at the Johnnie Walker Classic in Perth in February (pictured above).
David Rollo, vice-president of golf for IMG Australia, said that many expected a lot of Lee and to date he had over-delivered.
"He is exceptionally gifted and he is an exceptional talent. He's also got an exceptional work ethic," Rollo said from Melbourne.
"Those things put together make a pretty good combination. His results to date speak for themselves but what he did at the US Amateur and then in the Johnnie Walker Classic are two pretty good milestones for someone of his age.
"With Danny's (Korean) heritage and his New Zealand background, he will become a global player and the global resources we have will hopefully help him along the way."
IMG has a client list of stars, starting with world No 1 Tiger Woods and containing fellow top-10ers such as Spaniard Sergio Garcia, Ireland's Padraig Harrington, Vijay Singh, of Fiji, Englishman Paul Casey and Colombia's Camilo Villegas.
Rollo said Kevin Lynch, who works out of the company's Cleveland office in the US, would be Lee's principal handler.
"Danny's ambitions are clearly to get on the US PGA Tour in 2010 and our focus will be to minimise the distractions around him and let him concentrate on playing golf.
"That's what we are there to do, and hopefully create the opportunity for him to go out and show his talent."

Sour grapes threaten bitter

Tiger Woods' reputation

FROM THE GUARDIAN.CO.UK WEBSITE

By LAWRENCE DONEGAN

Tiger Woods' disappointment at losing his Masters battle with Phil Mickelson was understandable – his sourness was not

The duel between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson dominated much of Sunday's play at the Masters.
No one ever said major championship golf was fair but sometimes it can be downright brutal, both for those who lose, as Kenny Perry did at Augusta National on Sunday, and for those who win, such as Angel Cabrera who, when the American faltered, took advantage and secured the prized green jacket.
For Perry the brutality lay in knowing that, when he needed to produce a couple of decent shots to become the oldest major championship winner, he choked. For Cabrera it was the certainty of knowing that, if the 2009 Masters is ­remembered for anything, it will be the duel between Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods that dominated Sunday's final round.
Paired together, playing an hour ahead of the leaders, the world's No1 and No2, like a golfing version of Frazier and Ali in Manila, swapped birdie for birdie, refusing to concede ground until someone keeled over.
In the end both lost the war to Cabrera while Woods also lost the personal battle with Mickelson – in more ways than one.Great players make great champions but, as the world No1 reminded us after finishing joint sixth, one place behind Mickelson, they can also be world-class curmudgeons. "I almost won the tournament with a Band-Aid swing," Woods said.
No doubt makers of the world-famous plasters will be grateful for the unsolicited mention from the world's most famous athlete but then again they may not wish to be so closely linked with an assessment that was borderline delusional.
Admittedly his stunning tee-shot at the par-three 16th did bring Woods to within one shot of the leaders but they were five holes behind and still to play the 13th and 15th, both par-fives and eminently birdie-able. It would have required an ­extraordinary collapse elsewhere for Woods to prevail. In the end he did some collapsing of his own, bogeying the last two holes to finish four shots ­behind the winner and one behind Mickelson.
His disappointment afterwards was understandable, his sourness was not. Asked if he had enjoyed his role in a spectacle that captured the imagination of the thousands on the Augusta premises, and millions watching on television, he was as grim as an undertaker.
"You just go about your own business. I was just trying to post an 11 under par, to shoot a 65," he replied. "I hit it so badly warming up. I was hitting quick hooks, blocks, you name it. On the very first hole I almost hit it into [the eighth] fairway — one of the worst tee shots I've ever hit starting out. I fought my swing all day."
Presumably Mickelson was just as disappointed — possibly more so given he actually did have a realistic chance of winning the tournament — but unlike Woods he was able to share in the wider excitement over what had been one of the more thrilling days of golf in years. "It was fun, a very emotional day because it's up and down, up and down, a lot of highs and lows," he said. "The crowd made the highs even higher and the moans made the lows even lower, and it was just an emotional day."
As for beating Woods by a single shot, 67 to 68 on the final round, he was careful to frame the victory in a broader context. "I'm usually on the losing end of these things so it was nice to edge it for a change."
The contrast between Mickelson's ­apparent insouciance and Woods' evident anger was open to multiple interpretations. It was ever thus and this latest episode left those who believe the world No1 is infallible to argue that he was angry only because he cares so much.
By extension all conduct is seemingly acceptable, be it the constant cursing and club throwing – in which Woods has become the world-leader since his return from injury – or the childish behaviour he adopted before Sunday's final round, cold-shouldering Mickelson in an apparent ­attempt to make him feel uncomfortable.
There is no debate about Woods' desire but it should not be assumed he has the monopoly on ambition. Mickelson has won 36 times on the PGA tour, including three major championships; does that not indicate an extraordinary level of desire? And if that is the case, does Mickelson's reaction in the wake of Sunday's disappointment indicate nothing other than a sense of perspective and sportsmanship?
Woods is a better golfer than Mickelson (or at least his best golf is better than Mickelson's best golf) and he will go down as the greatest player in history. He is also the most driven – coveting Jack Nicklaus's record of 18 major championships like a child covets his best friend's toys.

Tiger will climb that mountain in the end but at what price to his reputation as a sportsman and, even more importantly, what price to his soul?

Peter Alliss suffering from


Augusta greenhouse gas

FROM THE TIMESONLINE WEBSITE
By PETER GILES
Take a bow: Katayama's fourth-place finish at the Masters was a defining moment, pity about the commentary.
Ah, those timeless sounds of Augusta. Could they be more instantly evocative? The blithe warbling and chittering of the birds. The distant wail of a passing freight train. The noise of Ángel Cabrera, later to be crowned Masters champion, wildly duffing an approach shot off the middle of the fairway and shouting, “F***! F***!”
At least, I’m pretty sure that’s what he shouted. Of course, it could have been a Spanish word, meaning, “Go left! Go left!” Alternatively, there was Tiger Woods, in one of the bouts of self-chastisement that are such a feature of the legend’s game, apparently offering lip-readers a rare — and, accordingly, highly collectable — use of the c-word. “Something in Swahili,” Peter Alliss (pictured above), covering gamely, thought.
Which brings us to yet another element of the great Augusta soundtrack: the eager background chatter of television viewers, arguing among themselves about whether the Voice of Golf should be forcibly retired. It wouldn’t be the Masters, frankly, without four, full, 18-hole rounds of the Alliss debate.
Nothing more neatly divides people, with the possible exception of a malfunctioning water sprinkler at the 12th.
Where do you fall? Indispensable, occasion-clinching generator of the course-side witticism or blazered bore? Dusty, cupboard-bound anachronism or still vital keeper of the golfing flame? Or could Alliss just plausibly be — whisper it — all of these things at the same time?
He was, as ever this weekend, a supplier of captions, many of which appear to be paying hearty homage to the heyday of radio comedy. “What did I do wrong there, mother?” Alliss said, the camera having framed a look of baffled despair on the face of Cabrera. (This might have worked better if Sam Torrance hadn’t been busy reminding us that Cabrera had been abandoned by his parents at the age of 3 and brought up by his grandparents. But, hey. This is light entertainment. Let’s not nit-pick.)
Alliss was quick, too, as usual, to paint a picture of viewers enjoying the tournament over “a gentle glass of wine”. (Alcoholism is always a blessedly genteel place in the Voice of Golf’s musings. The viewer is never numbly tearing off his seventh can of bargain bin cider or stoked off his face on stolen Blue Nun.) The difficulty is that, over the four days just passed, Alliss probably made as many as a hundred crisply illuminating and entirely welcome remarks about players’ club selections, approaches to the hole, the lay of the green, etc.


Yet what stays with one is the limping parody of Cabrera’s accent: “I forget to use the meedle of the club.” Or — still more thumb-bitingly awful — the point at which Shingo Katayama left the 18th green. “Sushi tonight, lad. Bit of sake,” Alliss commented.
At those moments, you can’t quite believe what you’re hearing. It’s political incorrectness gone mad — a reminder that the world strides forward in leaps and bounds, but that golf and Peter Alliss somehow don’t.
Equally traditional this weekend were the hymns to the course’s beauty — the repeated insistence that one has arrived in a scenic wonder without compare. “Amen Corner on Easter Sunday,” whispered Wayne Grady, typically. “The faithful have taken their cue.” Now, only a fool would suggest that those people at Augusta National don’t know how to keep a lawn trimmed and a sandtrap raked. But the way everyone cracks on about it, you would think the place was Yosemite or that we were present as dawn broke over the Serengeti. Have so many grown men ever been rendered so jellified by a bunch of forced-on azaleas?
Look at what Augusta does to Gary Lineker. This is the time of year when Britain’s leading crisps salesman is granted compassionate release from his penal servitude alongside Mark Lawrenson on Match of the Day. Presenting the Masters is, let’s face it, a largely decorative role, and Lineker is without question as decorative as anyone the BBC can stump up.
The job’s chief physical requirement — the ability to stay more or less upright on a white leather chair between a couple of jugs of flowers — he completes with undeniable aplomb.
Yet what happens on these holidays to the fundamental Lineker we know and understand? The cheekiness that is his habitual mode is left behind with Alan Hansen. Instead, in the presence of professional golfers, the former goal-poacher is overcome by a reverence that almost robs him of the capacity for speech and, indeed, facial expression.
Lineker might as well be on his knees in supplication throughout.
Ian Poulter, on the other hand, is clearly more choosy about whom he honours with his full attention. The golfer and award-winning self-publicist was blunt and uncooperative in the face of questioning by Shane O’Donoghue, the BBC’s post-round interview grabber. Invited, later, to join Lineker in full ceremony on the white leather, Poulter was all smiling consideration and reasonableness.
What do you call a person who conducts himself like that? Something in Swahili would probably cover it.

Jeev Milkha Singh accepts Asian

Tour honorary membership

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY ASIAN TOUR

India’s Jeev Milkha Singh has been afforded an honorary membership of the Asian Tour for his outstanding achievements and contribution to the game of golf in Asia and across the globe.
Singh joins the exclusive club of Asian Tour honorary members which include Vijay Singh of Fiji and Korea’s K J Choi.
“I think it’s a great honour for what I’ve done for golf in Asia. I’m pretty excited that I’ve been recognised for my achievements and I want to thank the Asian Tour and all the members for considering me for this recognition,” said Singh.
The 37-year-old Indian has become one of the world’s leading players in recent years where he has won eight tournaments in Asia, Europe and Japan over the past three seasons.
He has also broken into the world’s top-30 and has enjoyed the honour of winning two Asian Tour Order of Merits in 2006 and 2008. Singh also wrote a slice of history by becoming the first man to surpass US$ 1 million in earnings on the Asian Tour in a single season last year.
“This is where I started from and I will never forget that,” said Singh. “I will always go back and support the Asian Tour. The way the Asian Tour has grown is fantastic to see. I feel and strongly believe that the Asian Tour will continue to grow and produce top-class players.”
Singh (as a boy played in the Doug Sanders world junior championship at Aberdeen in the late 1980s-early 1990s) cut his professional teeth in Asia in 1995 and immediately showed his potential by finishing third on the Order of Merit. Between five seasons, he won four titles before enduring a dip in form due to injuries and loss in confidence.
The Indian endured several lean seasons before coming back with a vengeance in 2006 with a long-awaited victory in the Volvo China Open. It sparked a superb revival in his game as he went on to win three times around the world and lift his maiden Asian Tour’s Order of Merit crown.
Last season was a near replica of his 2006 success as he won four times internationally, including the Barclays Singapore Open which saw him take his season’s earnings to US$1.45 million and rewarded him with a second Order of Merit crown.
Asian Tour Executive Chairman Kyi Hla Han was delighted that Singh accepted the honorary membership.
“As one of the pioneers of the Asian Tour, Jeev’s success story serves as a wonderful inspiration to many young players in Asia. He learned to compete and win on the Asian Tour and is now regarded as one of the world’s best players.
“Jeev is well known for his tremendous work ethics, discipline and determination which are vital ingredients to succeed in the game of golf. He is looked up by many golfers in Asia and we are extremely proud and honoured that he is fully supportive of the Asian Tour and for what we stand for the game of golf in the region,” said Han.