Revival in motion for Singh on eve of Volvo Masters of Asia

Jeev Milkha Singh tees-off in the US$600,000 Volvo Masters of Asia on Thursday looking more and more like the player who was the shining beacon of Indian golf a few years ago.

Singh competes in what is the Asian Tour's season-ending Tour Championship at Thai Country Club alongside the region's best players including Thailand's Thaworn Wiratchant and Thongchai Jaidee.

After a resurgent season in Japan the man from Chandigarh appears to be rediscovering the kind of form which saw him become the first Indian to play on The European Tour, in 1997 and claim four titles on the Asian Tour between 1995 and 1999.

He was the undisputed number one player from the subcontinent and an inspiration to compatriots such as Arjun Atwal and Jyoti Randhawa (this week's defending champion) but following a wrist injury in 2000 he began to struggle with his game and as a consequence lost his confidence.

However, the 33 year old appears to be back on track after finishing in the top-50 on the Japan Tour Money List with earnings of US$195,211. He placed second in the Okinawa Open and recorded numerous top 10s.

The top-60 on the Asian Tour Order of Merit qualify for the Volvo Masters of Asia and Singh made it through ranked 20th after winning US$131,148 from 11 events.

For the past 18 months he has been coached by fellow professional and childhood friend Amritinder Singh and things have started to click again.

"We have grown up playing golf together. I have been working with him since last year and I have just gone back to my old basics. Not doing anything special. I have been working on better posture, and better balance. I have always had a different kind of swing so I have just been sticking to that," said Singh.

"I was really unhappy with the position he got me in at first but by April last year it came together. I personally feel my game is really good. I have just got to get my confidence back to shoot four good rounds. I don't trust myself at the right moment. The old bad thoughts kind of come in and that is what I have been working hard on," added the Indian.

He was in the hunt last Sunday at the UBS Hong Kong Open only five shots off the pace going into the final day but closed with a 73 to finish equal 18th.

It is the mental side that Singh has really had to work on, particularly during his slump.

"It was really tough. A lot of things changed. I was a frustrated man. I wasn't a pleasant human being. I felt everything was crashing and I made golf my life. That was wrong. I started to realize it is important but it is not my life. I started to realize I should think about other things other than golf, like family," said Singh.

"Golf is a sport which you should love playing but when you go back home you should relax, refresh yourself. Tell yourself there is another day. Other people are worse off than I am. Look at that and get yourself in a more positive frame of mind," he added.

Singh has always been a perfectionist and driven by a desire to play on the US PGA Tour, as he played college golf in the States.

His father, Milkha Singh, is a national hero in India. He claimed the bronze in the 400 metres in the 1960 Rome Olympics, running barefoot, and the gold in the 1958 Commonwealth Games in Cardiff, over the same distance.

Singh hopes to reach such dizzy heights in professional golf and now boasting a more mature approach he has time on his side.

Said Singh: "I am a human being and make mistakes. No one can play this game perfect. I can take a bad shot better now."

There is one other thought that will also help Singh when he tees-off this week and that is his last victory on the Asian Tour came in Thailand in 1999.

Judging by the way Singh is talking about his game and the results he is starting to produce the Indian could reign in The Kingdom once again.

December 6, 2005