'It's His Mentality More Than Anything': Pukhraj Gill Opens Up On Invaluable Lessons From Golf Icon Jeev Milkha Singh

(MENAFN- IANS) New Delhi, May 26 (IANS) Having recently broken through for his maiden international title at the ADT Players Championship, golfer Pukhraj Singh Gill is riding a wave of peak confidence. Currently sitting third on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) Order of Merit, the 29-year-old has his sights firmly trained on securing a full Asian Tour card as he prepares for the upcoming IGPL Morocco Rising Stars at Mazagan Beach Golf Resort.

Gill, who turned professional in 2018, achieved a breakthrough in his international win at the 2026 ADT Players Championship in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, while staging a dramatic comeback. In the process, he became the second IGPL player to achieve success on the Asian Development Tour, following Karandeep Kochhar, who previously won an ADT event in Egypt.

The Chandigarh golfer won his maiden professional title at the 2025 IGPL Invitational Jamshedpur and clinched the 2025 IGPL Order of Merit title.

In an exclusive conversation with IANS, Gill reflects on his journey from junior ranks to the international podium, the invaluable mental conditioning he absorbed from his father's national hockey background and mentor Jeev Milkha Singh, and how golf is steadily carving its own dedicated audience out of a cricket-frenzied nation.

IANS: Your journey started on the football fields. Now that you're winning an international championship, how does that rough start give you an edge over the players?

PG: Oh yes, definitely. I think it comes back to the age-old learning that you learn more from your losses than your wins. And starting out professionally the first 2 or 3 years, I had some signs of greatness, but they weren't as consistent as they've been over the last 2 or 3 years. And definitely what I learnt from my losses, I've been able to chalk up to the learnings, and I've been able to work harder and smarter on myself. And over the last 2 or 3 years, I think I've harnessed my potential very well. So yes, learnings do teach you, and that's been the case for me.

IANS: Your brother is also currently playing in the IGBL, so is there a very healthy rivalry, or is it purely a support system that you see? What would you like to share about the perspective?

PG: Yes, I feel like sibling rivalry doesn't extend all the way in our household. To us, I feel like we have a great balance of that, where we are very competitive with each other when it comes to the golf course. But when it comes to our household, it's obviously about seeing the other person play as well as you or sometimes even better, for that matter.

So, we do have contrasting styles, but we are able to share our thoughts when it comes to the game plan, when it comes to the short game or the putting, for example. But we are very different as golfers. So, we do take our own journey there. But we do have a healthy rivalry and almost an inspirational thing going out between the two of us.

IANS: With a father who played for the national hockey team. What is that one lesson from your father's hockey background that you find yourself applying on the tours?

PG: The basic one, very basic learning of patience and just hard work because my career already has transcended for more than two decades now. I started at eight or nine, and I'm about to turn 30 this year, and I've pretty much bloomed over the last two and a half, three years. They've been the best part of my career. Naturally there's a set of patience that when you're going through a rough patch, you just keep working and stay at it and keep believing that you're doing well.

Starting out great as a junior and international senior and a sub-junior player, there was always assurance that I got what it takes. So, it was always looming around the corner. So, that's how my preparation was also very optimistic. And of course, the last two years, especially the last week, have been an assurance of how good I am, having won my first international title. So, that has obviously been working out very well.

IANS: It's been a very pivotal moment for you when you met your role model, Jeev Milkha Singh, at the Chandigarh Golf Club. And now he's also associated with IGPL as a mentor. So, how do you think he's helping you navigate the most amazing legs of your IGPL, or is there some more learning that you still feel that you have from him at this moment?

PG: Oh definitely. I feel like you always learn from someone like Jeev, Sir, because I think he's pretty much done everything there is to do in the game. And coming from the same environment as me and playing at the same golf course, Chandigarh Golf Club, I feel like there's a lot to learn from him, not only in terms of his golf game but also his mentality more than anything. He's been playing actively for 30-35 years now.

So, I feel like you can just relate to the level of love that you're supposed to have for the game. And he went through a long drought before he won the IGPL event in Sri Lanka last year. So you can always imagine that someone even at his age can try and get the better of you sometimes. So, that is very inspirational. And obviously, he's very good in terms of mentoring the young guys.

Whenever I meet him, I'm able to get a few words of wisdom off of him. And he's just a very motivating sight to be around. So, that has definitely stayed.

IANS: You're currently sitting on top of the ADT merit list. You're back third with a goal of a top five or top six finish for the Asian Tour qualification. So, with the upcoming events like the Morocco Rising Stars, how are you tailoring your training? How are you preparing for the upcoming events?

PG: Yes, I'm just trying to keep the enthusiasm up and making sure that I enjoy the success I've had from my win. And just working on the same trots and trying to keep that aggressive mindset of, trying to win again. Because that suits my style very well. And now that you have won, it's a very familiar feeling, and you'd love to taste that again. And that's my game plan for Morocco as well. To go out there and just play as aggressively as I can and use my advantages that I have in terms of ball striking and hopefully get it done again. Right.

IANS: And also talking about the courses of Morocco and when you play in the international leagues. The course grounds are very different as compared to the national ones. So, how do you feel that like participating in international leagues? How does your training become more like different from what you prepare over here for?

PG: Thankfully, I've had quite a bit of international exposure thanks to the AM Green IGPL calendar and the pathway to ADT in the Asian Tour. Whereas I've been playing internationally for three years now. So, I feel that there's this extra level of comfort, which starts with the mind that you have been here before and done this.

And the only difference in terms of preparation is that you try and play different styles of golf courses. Like, when you're playing somewhere in the West, you try to play golf courses, which are relatively more flexible off the tee. And you get used to hitting your driver a little longer and having longer shots in.

So, that's all in terms of preparation. But in terms of mindset, it's just about continuing to learn because every day and every round of golf is going to teach you something. So, that's something you try and keep in the back of your head and stay patient and keep learning. The journey doesn't stop.

IANS: You recently became the next Indian of the current league to win on the Asian Development Tour in the last six months. And how does it feel to be at the forefront of this new wave of Indian dominance on the developmental circuit?

PG: It feels really, really nice. But this has been my goal over the last four or five years. Karandeep has been a very dear friend. And when your compatriot, who you've grown up playing with, goes out there and does it, he's able to help you. Not only in terms of learning but also in terms of motivation that it can be done.

And having done that, I really like the position I'm in because I like playing golf internationally. The designs in Asia really suit me. And I feel quite comfortable being in the position I am. I think I'll make the very most of it.

IANS: So, Shuttler Satwiksairaj Rankireddy recently sparked a debate about the silent homecoming for the Thomas Cup team. So, as a golfer in a cricket-frenzied nation, do you feel the same pressure to prove your worth to the Indian public despite winning on the international tours like the ADT?

PG: Honestly, in my case, the last few years of Indian golf have been in the limelight quite a bit. So, I've got a great recognition and support in terms of my entire journey internationally. And even after my win in Malaysia last week on the ADT, I got a great response from the fans back home. Whether it be my compatriots on the league or whether it be just other club golfers who play for the liking of the game.

So, I feel that the multi-sport-following audience is definitely out there. You have an equal number of fans now in terms of a lot of the sports where people are not just following cricket anymore, which is nice to see. And I feel like with Yuvraj Singh doing his bit in promoting golf and Leander Paes introducing golf nationally to some of the people who've never played before, that has increased our audience quite a bit.

And yeah, it's not as lucrative maybe. It's not that people have you on their shoulders or such. But there's definitely a great recognition and fan following which are being introduced to our game.

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