May 8th 2010, New Delhi: Gaganjeet Bhullar, the second-highest Indian in the world golf rankings, has earned a special invitation to compete at the Japan PGA Championship scheduled to be held at the Passage Kinkai Island Golf Club, Nagasaki from May 13 to 16. Jeev Milkha Singh, the highest ranked Indian in the world, is already exempt to play in Japan.

The 22-year-old from Kapurthala has been handed a special invitation by the Japan Golf Tour Organisation in recognition of his consistent performances in India and Asia. Bhullar won his first professional event on the Aircel-PGTI in March 2009 and has not looked back ever since as he went on to claim six more titles, including two on the Asian Tour, over the next 12 months.

Bhullar, currently ranked 131 in the official world golf rankings, has taken giant strides in the world of professional golf over the last two years. He finished sixth on the Asian Tour Order of Merit last year with earnings of US$ 308,916. Gaganjeet also had a dream run in the 2009 Aircel-PGTI season, having won five events out of seven starts to finish fifth on the Aircel-PGTI Order of Merit.

Mr. Padamjit Sandhu, Director, PGTI, said, “The invitation extended to Gaganjeet Bhullar for the prestigious Japan PGA Championship not only recognizes his talent but also reaffirms the growing strength of Indian professional golf. Our sincere thanks to the Japan Golf Tour Organization ( JGTO ) for extending this invitation, and I am confident the JGTO & the PGTI will further build on productive exchanges between the two tours over the coming years. This is a great opportunity for Gaganjeet to showcase the country’s rising strength on the global stage, and we wish him the very best.