Shubhankar Sharma receiving Arjuna Award from the President of India Shri Ramnath Kovind
Shubhankar Sharma, India’s highest-ranked golfer and a winner of two European Tour titles, has been conferred the prestigious Arjuna Award. 22-year-old Sharma, who heads the Asian Tour’s Habitat for Humanity standings, now becomes the 20th Indian golfer and the 11th Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI) member to be recognized with the honour. He is also the youngest golfer to win the Arjuna Award.
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The Chandigarh resident took the sport by storm following two European Tour titles, the US$1.2 million Joburg Open in South Africa and the US$3 million Maybank Championship in Malaysia, between December 2017 and February 2018. Sharma then went on to bag two top-20s on the PGA TOUR including a creditable T-9 at the US$ 10 million WGC-Mexico Championship and a T-7 at the US$1.75 million Hero Indian Open.
Subsequently, Sharma went on to make Indian golfing history by playing all four Majors in the same year as his Major debut. Besides becoming the youngest Indian to play the Masters, the US Open and the PGA Championship, he also became the youngest Indian to make the cut at a Major when accomplished the feat on the eve of his 22nd birthday at The Open.
Reacting to his Arjuna Award nomination, Sharma said, “… I am absolutely honoured and grateful to the nation to have found me worthy of this honour.”
Congratulating Shubhankar on his Arjuna Award nomination, Uttam Singh Mundy, CEO, PGTI, said, “We at the PGTI extend our heartiest congratulations to Shubhankar Sharma for being conferred the prestigious Arjuna Award. Shubhankar’s record-breaking accomplishments on the international stage over the last one year have contributed in raising the stature of Indian golf. His talent and single-minded focus have helped him emerge as one of Asia’s leading professionals at a very young age. The award is a true recognition of his feats…”