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Arjun Atwal, born on March 20, 1973, is a top Indian professional golfer. Atwal has the distinction of being the first Indian to play in the high profile US PGA Tour.
Atwal learnt the tricks of the trade while playing in the hallowed greens of the Royal Calcutta Golf Club during his teens. After turning professional in 1995 Atwal established himself as one of the leading players on the Asian Tour and topped the order of merit in 2003.
In 2003, Atwal became the first player on Asian PGA to exceed US $1 million in career earnings when he claimed a one-stroke victory in the Hero Honda Masters on home soil in the same year.
Atwal was the second Indian golfer to earn membership of the European Tour after Jeev Milka Singh and the first to win a European Tour Order of Merit event with his 14-under-par triumph at the 2002 Caltex Singapore Masters.
In February 2003, Atwal earned his second triumph on the European Tour when he held off former U.S. Open winner Retief Goosen to claim a commanding four-shot victory at the Carlsberg Malaysian Open. After putting up a lackluster performance at his debut in 2004 US PGA Tour, Atwal did remarkable well in 2005, losing the BellSouth Classic by a whisker.
