I want to break into ATP Tour top 100 this year — Jeev

New Delhi, Jan 2: Ace Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh, after an eventful 1999, has set his eyes on breaking into the top 100 in the Profes...

New Delhi, Jan 2: Ace Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh, after an eventful 1999, has set his eyes on breaking into the top 100 in the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) rankings this year. The 28-year-old son of the legendary Flying Sikh Milkha Singh said he has improved a lot during the past one year that saw him winning a major Lexus International in Thailand.

“I want to break into the top 100 and win a title on the European Tour,” jeev said before leaving for a five-week season-opening tour of South Africa and Australia.

Jeev said he was satisfied with his performance. “There was a definite improvement, but I want to do better.” The only Indian on the highly competitive EPGA Circuit started 1999 ranked 321st and after the gruelling year he rose to 160.

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The Indian, who failed to give finishing touches to his excellent opening on EPGA tournaments, said a win in Thailand has helped a lot in boosting his morale. The win in Thailand came after three barren years though he finished runner-up inmany tournaments.

“The jinx has been broken in Thailand and i am confident of carrying on from there,” Jeev said.

Jeev, currently placed 50th on the European circuit after starting the year as 104th, said he was hopeful of doing better in the competitive atmosphere of EPGA. “Getting a chance to play alongside top level pros on the circuit has been immensely useful for me,” he said.

The Indian, who has so far failed to proceed beyond the penultimate stage of qualifying rounds for the USPGA, said he hoped the year 2000 will usher in good luck for him. “I have been trying very hard to get into the USPGA. I’ll continue to do that this year,” Jeev said

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Out of 1000 competitors in the qualifying round, only top 40 make it every year. Jeev rebuffed criticism that he was complacent and not serious when playing in India. “On the contrary, the reason behind my poor performance (in the Delhi Hero Honda Masters) was because I had less experience of the course in India. “Sometimes I come to India (to play)after a gap of more than a year. This has telling effect on my performance,” he said, adding that he planned to play more in India.

Jeev expressed disappointment at not being able to play more in India as his professional commitments in Europe were keeping him engaged. Speaking about the growth of golf in India, Jeev said the game has gained a lot of following with more and more people starting to take interest. “After cricket and tennis it is golf in India. And it is a good sign,” he said. Jeev singled out Arjun Atwal and Jyoti Randhawa as bright prospects for the future. He said India had been doing well in golf and is rated third in Asia behind Japan and Korea.

Jeev will open the European season with the Dunhill Cup that begins on January 10 followed by the South African Open. He then proceeds to Australia to play in the Heineken Cup and the Greg Norman Cup and round off the four-week tour with Malaysian Open.