Golf in India
{{See also|Professional Golf Tour of India}}
{{Further|Royal Calcutta Golf Club}}
{{Infobox sport overview
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| image = Fontana Vienna Euro PGA 2008 (8).JPG
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| caption = Indian professional golfer Jeev Milkha Singh after winning the 2008 Austrian Open.
| union = Indian Golf Union
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| registered = 215{{cite web |title=Player Profiles |url=http://indiangolfunion.org/player-profiles/?members_page=18 |website=Indian Golf Union |access-date=19 July 2018}}
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| national_list = Amateur Golf Championship of India
All India Ladies Amateur Championship
All India Seniors Golf Championship
All India Junior Golf Championship{{cite web |title=National Events |url=http://indiangolfunion.org/national-events/ |website=Indian Golf Union |access-date=19 July 2018}}
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| intl_list = Indian Open
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Golf in India is a growing sport. Golf is especially popular among the wealthier classes, but has not yet caught on with others due to the expenses involved in playing.
The most successful Indian golfers are Jeev Milkha Singh, Raminder Sidhu who is a Top Golf star and Anirban Lahiri. Singh has won three titles on the European Tour, four on the Japan Golf Tour, and six on the Asian Tour. His highest world ranking to date is 28th, achieved in March 2009. Singh has won the Asian Tour Order of Merit twice. Meanwhile, Lahiri has two European Tour wins and seven Asian Tour wins. He qualified for the 2015 Presidents Cup.
Other Indians who have won the Asian Tour Order of Merit are Jyoti Randhawa in 2002 (the first Indian to achieve this){{cite news |url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/golf/top-stories/Jyoti-Randhawa-rekindles-old-magic-on-Asian-Tour/articleshow/12688669.cms |title=Jyoti Randhawa rekindles old magic on Asian Tour |date=16 April 2012 |work=The Times of India |access-date=5 May 2012}} and Arjun Atwal, who went on in 2010 to become the first India-born player to become a member of the US-based PGA Tour and win the 2010 Wyndham Championship.{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/golf/news/story?id=5484273 |title=Arjun Atwal of India gets historic win |date=22 August 2010 |work=ESPN.com |access-date=5 May 2012}}
India's men's team won gold at the 1982 Asian Games. They also won silver at the 2006 Asian Games and 2010 Asian Games. Lakshman Singh won the individual gold medal at the 1982 Asian Games. Shiv Kapur won the individual gold medal at the 2006 Asian Games.
There are numerous golf courses all over India.{{citation needed|date=May 2012}} There is a Professional Golf Tour of India. The main tournament is the Hero Indian Open, co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.
In recent years, the popularity of golf among amateur and corporate players in India has seen a notable rise, supported by the availability of high-quality imported equipment and the emergence of domestic tournaments like the India Amateur Golf League. Cities such as Bengaluru, Pune, and Gurugram now have a strong golfing culture. Retail interest in brands like Ping, TaylorMade, and Titleist has also grown due to increased participation among mid-handicap players.{{Cite news |last=Sudevan |first=Praveen |date=2022-04-23 |title=How golf in India is unshackling itself from its tag as ‘an elite old man’s sport’ |url=https://www.thehindu.com/sport/other-sports/golf-india-aditi-ashok-anirban-lahiri/article65331495.ece |access-date=2025-07-10 |work=The Hindu |language=en-IN |issn=0971-751X}}
In addition to the commendable performances by the golf players of India, the Indian Golf Union (IGU) is making earnest efforts to improve the standard of the game in the country. Established in 1955, IGU made a significant decision in 1995, which gave rise to the birth of a separate body for the sport - Professional Golfers' Association of India (PGAI). Recent development in Indian golf is commencement of Indian Pitch and Putt Union, apex body of Pitch and Putt Golf in India, and membership of International Pitch and Putt Association. The effort of IPPU to support golf infrastructure in India is also appreciated by World Golf Foundation; In his letter to IPPU Secretary General Rakesh Purohit, Steve Mona, CEO of WGF, gave his support and encouraged the program of IPPU to develop Pitch and Putt Golf in India. The Indian Golf Union ( IGU ) and HVR SPORTS (Chairman: Harshavardhan Reddy) have come out with new schemes to grow the sport in India.{{Cite web|url=http://zeenews.india.com/sports/golf/indian-golf-union-hvr-sports-take-the-elite-sport-of-golf-to-the-masses_1851557.html|title = Indian Golf Union & HVR Sports take the elite sport of Golf to the masses|date = 2 February 2016}}
Total medals won by Indian Golfers in Major tournaments
| class="wikitable sortable"
! Competition ! Gold ! Silver ! Bronze ! Total | ||||
| Asian Games
|3 |4 |0 |7 | ||||
| Total | 3 | 4 | 0 | 7 |
- updated till 31st July, 2024
Notable Performance at Summer Olympics
| class="wikitable" | |||
| Year | Event | Player | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| rowspan = "2"|2020 | |||
| Women's individual | Aditi Ashok | 4th |
=List of National Sports award recipients in Golf, showing the year, award, and gender=
| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="width:73%"
! scope="col" style="width:12%" | Year ! scope="col" style="width:30%" | Recipient ! scope="col" style="width:19%" | Award ! scope="col" style="width:16%" | Gender | |
| {{anchor|GolfAA}}
| style="text-align:center;" |1961 ! scope="row" | {{sortname|P. G. |Sethi}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1963
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Ashok |Malik|dab=golfer|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1967
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Raj Kumar |Pitambar|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1972
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Anjani N. |Desai|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Female |
| style="text-align:center;" |1973
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Vikramjit |Singh|dab=golfer|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1975
! scope="row" | {{sortname|S. K. |Jamshed|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1977–1978
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Sita |Rawlley|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Female |
| style="text-align:center;" |1982
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Lakshman |Singh|dab=golfer}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1987
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Nonita |Lal|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Female |
| style="text-align:center;" |1991
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Ali |Sher|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1996
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Amit |Luthra}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1997
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Harmik |Kahlon|nolink=1}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |1999
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Jeev Milkha |Singh}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2002
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Shiv |Kapur}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2004
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Jyoti |Randhawa}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2007
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Arjun |Atwal}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2013
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Gaganjeet |Bhullar}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2014
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Anirban |Lahiri}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2017
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Shiv |Chawrasia}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2018
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Shubhankar |Sharma}} | Arjuna Award | Male |
| style="text-align:center;" |2020
! scope="row" | {{sortname|Aditi |Ashok}} | Arjuna Award | Female |
Golf Associations in India
= Governing bodies of Sport =
- Indian Golf Union, apex body of Golf affiliated to International Golf Federation
- Professional Golf Tour of India, the controlling body for professional golf in India
- Women's Golf Association of India, women's professional golf organisation of India
- Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) of India, a body involved in educating and training its members to the highest level who are involved in the various aspects of the game for its overall development.
- Indian Pitch and Putt Union, the governing body of Pitch and Putt Golf in India member of International Pitch n Putt Associations
- Paralympic Golf Association of India, organisation for golfers with disabilities in India
- India Golf Tourism Association, organisation for golf tourism in India
= Golf Industry Association =
- Asia Golf Industry Show Hosted by CII
- Golf Industry Association, the industry group to develop and support different industries of golf and allied business
- Golf Course Superintendents & Managers Association of India, their objective is to assist all golf course developers, owners, and entrepreneurs running golf courses.
= Leading Golf Event Organisers =
- Romitbosegolf
- My Golf Tours
- Can and able entertainment
- Premier Lifestyle Event Management
- India Golf Tours
- Sports & Leisure Worldwide
- Brandon de Souza Management Services
- MYT Sports & Adventures Marketing Pvt Ltd
- Ace Golf
- Professional Management Group
- Rishi Narain Golf Management
- Dehradun Golf Academy
- K&A Golf
- The Khyber Golf Cup by
Major Golf Tournaments in India
2014 season on the professional tour had 24 tournaments. SAIL-SBI Open, and the Panasonic Open were co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the Take Solutions India Masters was co-sanctioned by the Asian Development Tour. BILT Open, CG Open, Louis Philippe Cup, TATA Open and the Mcleod Russel Tour Championship were the ones with the highest Prize monies. The 2015 Hero Indian Open is co-sanctioned by the Asian Tour and the European Tour.
The Expat Cup, The Bonallack Trophy, SAIL Open, DLF Women's Indian Open, The India Golf Festival, Corporate Team Challenge, Kashmir Golf Festival, Take Solutions World Corporate Golf Challenge, The Toyota Golf Festival, Mercedes Trophy, Citibank World Golfers Championship, ICICI Bank Private Banking Masters, The ICICI Bank International Pro-Am, The British Airways Executive Challenge, The World NRI Challenge, Barclays Invitational,
Golf infrastructure in India
{{Main|List of golf courses in India}}
India currently{{As of?|date=May 2025}} has 196 registered golf courses and around 50% of those registered courses are situated on military bases, which are only accessible to military.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}} 35 additional courses are un-affiliated (approx 17 Pitch and Putt Courses).{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}} This leaves roughly 135 courses to cater for a civilian golf demand.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}
The makeup of the golf course supply is split between 18-hole (39% share) and 9-hole (60% share) facilities, with three 27-hole clubs.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}
Research collected for KPMG's Golf Benchmark Survey indicates that the average number of rounds played per annum at 18-hole facilities ranges from 25,000 to 30,000 (excluding military courses).{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}} At some of the busier clubs where floodlights are used, hours can be extended to accommodate a higher demand.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}
File:Pitchandputt.jpg; suitable for Urban India]]
Average annual revenues for both 9- and 18-hole courses range US$180,000–200,000 (excluding military courses) with some larger, more popular clubs reaching anywhere up to $800,000 per year.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}
Another major challenge India faces today in developing golf courses is the inability to acquire land in both a cost- and time-efficient manner.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}} Land parcels are generally small, and developers need to purchase multiple plots at a cost that can quickly inflate. The initial steps taken when planning a project with a golf component can be time-consuming, expensive and misunderstood, delaying developments and have, in some instances, resulted in the omission of golf from project master plans.{{Citation needed|date=May 2025}}