Oct 3, 2017: Gaganjeet Bhullar of India hopes to return to winning ways at the US$500,000 Yeangder Tournament Players Championship (TPC) which starts on Thursday.
Bhullar enjoyed a solid 2016 season where he won twice and he is determined to win the Yeangder TPC again after his success in 2012 at the Linkou International Golf and Country Club.
The 29-year-old will be among the star-studded cast which includes Chan Shih-chang of Chinese Taipei, a two-time Asian Tour winner, Juvic Pagunsan of the Philippines, who finished tied second last week, and David Lipsky of the United States.
After finishing tied seventh at the Mercuries Taiwan Masters last week, Bhullar, ranked 25th on the Order of Merit is eyeing another good result at his favourite hunting ground.
“I won here in 2012 so I have a lot of fond memories. I have a lot of good finishes in this country. This golf course really suits my game and I am riding high on confidence and looking forward to playing well this week.
It has been an okay year. I would say I am playing well but not scoring in all four rounds. There were many occasions where I would start well over first two days and could not click over the weekend. But other than that, I’m feeling good with my game, hitting the ball well and thinking positive.
The reason why I’m not scoring? Sometimes it is because of my short game or poor driving. I’m just waiting for it to click like how it happened to me in previous years. My game feels good and I feel confident this week. The weather is going to play an important role like what always happens in Taipei.
My goal is to win on Tour every year. I was fortunate enough to win twice last year so I want to repeat what I did last year and work on my world ranking points. I hope to get into the top-100 by the end of the year” said, Bhullar.
Richard T. Lee of Canada needs a good result to secure a spot in the CIMB Classic in Malaysia next week. He is currently ranked 11th on the Order of Merit and will need to maintain his position to qualify for the event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and PGA Tour.
Jazz Janewattananond of Thailand believes he is a more matured player after missing out on a chance to win the Yeangder TPC title. He trailed by three shots heading into the final round but slipped to a share of 13thplace after closing with a disappointing 74.
Did you know?
- Bhullar is one win away from equaling the record held by Jyoti Randhawa and Arjun Atwal as the Indians with most Asian Tour victories. Jyoti and Atwal have won eight times on the Asian Tour.
- Bhullar has not missed a single cut in four appearances at the Yeangder TPC. He won in 2012 and finished tied 13th in the last edition.
- He has two top-10 results this year which includes a tied second place finish at the Thailand Open in May.
- He was India’s number one amateur in 2004 and 2006 and claimed a silver medal in the team event at the 2006 Asian Games in Doha.
- Lee dislocated his shoulder in March. After returning from injury, he sharpened his game and won his second Asian Tour title at the Shinhan Donghae Open in Korea last month.
- As an amateur, Lee qualified for the 2007 U.S. Open but had to retire from the second round due to an injured wrist.
- Jazz lost his Asian Tour card last year. With limited playing opportunities he won the Bashundhara Bangladesh Open in February which came with a winner’s exemption for 2017 and 2018.
- He is currently ranked eighth on the Order of Merit and looks likely to qualify for the CIMB Classic. He hopes to maintain his energy levels as he will be playing in his sixth event this week.
- Jazz first played his way into the history books of the Asian Tour in 2010 when he became the youngest ever player to make the halfway cut at the 2010 Asian Tour International in Bangkok at the age of 14 years and 71 days.
Asian Tour Release
