Arjun Atwal facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Arjun Atwal |
|
|---|---|
Atwal in action in 2012
|
|
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Arjun Singh Atwal |
| Born | 20 March 1973 Asansol, India |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 185 lb (84 kg; 13.2 st) |
| Nationality |  India |
| Residence | Kolkata, India Windermere, Florida, U.S. |
| Spouse |
Sona Atwal (m. 2000)
|
| Children | 2 |
| Career | |
| Turned professional | 1995 |
| Current tour(s) | PGA Tour Champions Asian Tour |
| Former tour(s) | PGA Tour< European Tour Web.com Tour Asian Tour |
| Professional wins | 13 |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| PGA Tour | 1 |
| European Tour | 3 |
| Asian Tour | 8 (Tied 6th all time) |
| Web.com Tour | 1 |
| Other | 3 |
| Best results in Major Championships |
|
| The Masters Tournament | CUT: 2011 |
| U.S. Open | CUT: 2010 |
| The Open Championship | CUT: 2004 |
| PGA Championship | CUT: 2005, 2011 |
| Achievements and awards | |
| Asian PGA Tour Rookie of the Year |
1995 |
| Asian PGA Tour Order of Merit winner |
2003 |
| Asian PGA Tour Players' Player of the Year |
2003 |
Arjun Singh Atwal (born 20 March 1973) is a famous Indian professional golfer. He has played on major golf tours around the world. He made history as the first golfer born in India to play on and win a tournament on the U.S.-based PGA Tour.
Contents
Early Life and Golf Start
Arjun Atwal was born in Asansol, India, into a Sikh family. His father, Harminder Singh Atwal, was an industrialist. Arjun went to St. James' School in Kolkata.
He started playing golf when he was 14 years old. He practiced at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club and Tollygunge Club. He also spent two years studying in the United States. He attended W. T. Clarke High School in Westbury, New York.
Arjun Atwal's Golf Career
Arjun Atwal became a professional golfer in 1995. He quickly became one of the best players on the Asian Tour. In 2003, he was the top player on the Asian Tour's money list. He was also the first golfer to earn over a million U.S. dollars on that tour. He achieved this by winning the Hero Honda Masters in India.
Arjun was the second Indian golfer to join the European Tour. He was also the first Indian to win a European Tour event. This happened in 2002 at the Caltex Singapore Masters. He won by five strokes. He won another European Tour event in 2003, the Carlsberg Malaysian Open.
Later in 2003, Arjun earned a spot on the PGA Tour in the U.S. This made him the first golfer born in East India to do so. In his first year on the PGA Tour in 2004, he finished 142nd on the money list.
In 2005, Arjun almost won a PGA Tour event several times. At the BellSouth Classic, he played very well. He ended up in a five-player sudden-death playoff. Even though he didn't win that one, he showed great skill. He finished 82nd on the money list that year. This meant he could keep playing on the Tour in 2006.
In 2010, Arjun Atwal made history again. He won the Wyndham Championship on the PGA Tour. This made him the first Indian-born player to ever win on the PGA Tour. He was also the first player to win a PGA Tour event after qualifying on Monday. This means he had to play a special round just to get into the tournament.
After his big win, Arjun continued to play golf. In 2014, he won the Dubai Open on the Asian Tour. This was his first win in four years. This win also gave him a two-year pass to play on the Asian Tour.
Professional Wins Summary
Arjun Atwal has won 13 professional golf tournaments. Here are some of his key victories:
PGA Tour Wins
He won one tournament on the PGA Tour.
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 Aug 2010 | Wyndham Championship | −20 (61-67-65-67=260) | 1 stroke |  David Toms |
European Tour Wins
He has won three tournaments on the European Tour.
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 Feb 2002 | Caltex Singapore Masters1 | −14 (70-69-67-68=274) | 5 strokes |  Richard Green |
| 2 | 23 Feb 2003 | Carlsberg Malaysian Open1 | −24 (62-65-67-66=260) | 4 strokes |  Retief Goosen, Brad Kennedy |
| 3 | 9 Mar 2008 | Maybank Malaysian Open1 (2) | −18 (70-68-68-64=270) | Playoff |  Peter Hedblom |
1Co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour
Asian Tour Wins
Arjun Atwal has won eight tournaments on the Asian Tour.
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 Mar 1999 | Wills Indian Open | −12 (72-68-66-70=276) | 4 strokes |  Shiv Chawrasia,  Kang Wook-soon, Prayad Marksaeng |
| 2 | 5 Nov 2000 | Hero Honda Masters | −18 (68-68-68-66=270) | 2 strokes |  Simon Dyson |
| 3 | 12 Nov 2000 | Star Alliance Open | −12 (65-63-68-72=268) | 2 strokes |  Yeh Wei-tze |
| 4 | 24 Feb 2002 | Caltex Singapore Masters1 | −14 (70-69-67-68=274) | 5 strokes | Richard Green |
| 5 | 23 Feb 2003 | Carlsberg Malaysian Open1 | −24 (62-65-67-66=260) | 4 strokes | Retief Goosen, Brad Kennedy |
| 6 | 11 Nov 2003 | Hero Honda Masters (2) | −7 (69-71-70-71=281) | 1 stroke |  Pablo del Olmo, Jyoti Randhawa, Gary Rusnak |
| 7 | 9 Mar 2008 | Maybank Malaysian Open1 (2) | −18 (70-68-68-64=270) | Playoff | Peter Hedblom |
| 8 | 21 Dec 2014 | Dubai Open | −16 (73-65-68-66=272) | 1 stroke | Wang Jeung-hun |
1Co-sanctioned by the European Tour
Nationwide Tour Wins
He won one tournament on the Nationwide Tour (now called the Korn Ferry Tour).
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory |
Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 Oct 2008 | Chattanooga Classic | −24 (66-60-66-72=264) | Playoff | Webb Simpson |
Other Wins
- 1995 DCM Open
- 1997 Classic Southern India Open
- 2000 Wills Eastern Open
Team Golf Appearances
Arjun Atwal has also represented Asia and India in several team golf competitions:
- Dynasty Cup (representing Asia): 2003 (Asia won!)
- World Cup (representing India): 2005
- Royal Trophy (representing Asia): 2006
- EurAsia Cup (representing Asia): 2018 (He was the non-playing captain for the Asian team)
See Also
- 2003 PGA Tour Qualifying School graduates
- 2008 Nationwide Tour graduates
- List of golfers with most Asian Tour wins
