Jeev eyes top-50 ranking, Majors qualification this season

New Delhi: Hoping to remain injury-free, ace Indian golfer Jeev Milkha Singh said he would be striving to break back into the top-50 of world rankings and qualify for the Major Championships this season.

"My goal this season, if I can stay injury-free, is to get back into the top 50 in the world, get in the Majors and have a good go at it," said the current world number 91, who was the first Indian to make the world top-50 back in 2006. "I`m feeling pretty good about my game now, so I`m excited about the season ahead and hopefully I can build on some great results last year," he added. Jeev will spearhead the home challenge at the fourth edition of the Avantha Masters, which will be played from March 14-17 at a new venue, Jaypee Greens Golf Course in Greater Noida. Jeev is India`s most successful golfer, having accrued a total of four European Tour titles including last year`s Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open. He is also a two-time Asian Tour Order of Merit winner. His best performance at the Avantha Masters, which is tri-sanctioned by the Asian Tour, European Tour and PGTI, came in 2011, when he finished in a tie for 11th place behind his compatriot SSP Chowrasia at DLF Golf and Country Club. This year the 1.8 million euro tournament moves to the town of Greater Noida and Jeev is expecting plenty of birdies for the locals to cheer at Jaypee Greens GC. "It`s a Greg Norman golf course, well-designed and usually in good condition. I don`t think the rough is going to be up because the winter has been quite severe, which is a shame because the course probably needs a bit of rough to defend it," he said. PTI