Veteran Indian golfer Gaganjeet Bhullar expressed confidence about India’s medal prospects in golf at the 2026 Asian Games, stating it has a realistic chance of winning gold in both the men’s and women’s events.

India, which has won seven medals in golf at the Asian Games and not won a gold medal since 2002, will field a three-member team in the men’s and women’s circuit.

Aditi Ashok, silver medallist at the 2023 Games in Guangzhou will headline the women’s team alongside Diksha Dagar and Pranavi Urs. The men’s team will comprise Yuvraj Sandhu, Veer Ahlawat, and Saptak Talwar.

“I’m especially bullish about the women’s team, I think they are strong contenders for gold. I have played with Diksha a few times and she’s very impressive. We have a young and vibrant team who have played well in the last 24 months. The Asian Games is a week where anything can happen and I wish them well,” Bhullar told Sportstar.

Golf at the 2026 Games will be held from September 30 to October 3 at the Kasugai Country Club East Course in Japan. The sport will feature four medal events – men’s individual, men’s team, women’s individual, and women’s team.

While the 38-year-old threw his weight behind India’s golfers, he was also quick to caution them against taking the competition lightly.

“It definitely won’t be easy, there are some countries with good golfers who will be in the fray. I think South Korea will also go in as favourites. Japan and Hong Kong cannot be ruled out and as always, you can never write off China,” the Arjuna Awardee added.

The 11-time Asian Tour winner was sharing his views during the unveiling of Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL) team Chennai Lions at the TNGF Cosmo Golf Club in Chennai on Friday. The IGPL is a ten-team, city-based franchise competition akin to the Indian Premier League (IPL) in cricket, involving 66 golfers taking part in 15 tour events across the calendar year.

Now in its second edition, the teams in the competition are Mumbai Garudas, Vizag Dolphins, Delhi Blue Bulls, Gurugram Tuskers, Chennai Lions, Hyderabad Firebirds, Punjab Raptors, Goa Eagles, Kolkata Tigers, and Bengaluru Stallions.

Bhullar is part of the Chennai Lions as its icon player, along with Yashas Chandra, Samarth Dwivedi, and Harshjeet Singh Sethie.

IGPL’s focus extends beyond the league through its ‘Golf on Wheels’ initiative, which promotes grassroots development and making golf more accessible to the general public.

“If we want golf to grow in our country, it’s important to raise awareness about the sport amongst the youth. We are confident we can achieve this through our initiative, by visiting educational institutions and residential communities and setting up golf academies, where young adults can be educated and trained,” said Thimmaja Rao Yammada, managing director of Vimtra Ventures, the owner of Chennai Lions.

“Accessibility is also a gap we need to bridge because golf is an expensive sport. We plan to introduce driving ranges and short courses that will be far more affordable compared to the 18-hole, championship level courses,” said Subash Yammada, CEO of Vimtra Ventures.

Aashish Vaishnava, IGPL’s golf architect and master planner, identified poor infrastructure as the primary factor that has stalled the rise of golf in India.

“We just got finished with the foreign leg of the season but we are forced to host Chennai’s home games (between September 23 and 25) in UAE because the city does not have a world-class golf course. The goal moving forward is to increase the number of golf courses in the country to a significant number,” Vaishnava told Sportstar.

“The leading countries in the world are the ones that have the maximum number of golf courses. We have already begun talks with the government to expedite the land acquisition process. In Chennai, we’ll be focusing on the ECR region,” Vaishnava added.

Golf might be lagging behind other sports in terms of popularity at the moment, but Bhullar believes the future is bright for the club-and-ball sport.

“There’s no reason why golf can’t become as popular as cricket one day. I think in ten years time, you will see heads turn and more people start taking more active interest in Indian golf both domestically and globally,” he said.

Published on Aug 14, 2026