Indian-American Manav Shah has become the first AM Green IGPL player to qualify for a Major, in this case the US Open since the AM Green IGPL was inaugurated last year in September.
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The 33-year-old Indian American, who has come close to winning on the AM Green IGPL, has been in great form this season with three Top-7 finishes and one at T-11 in four IGPL starts. He has also spent a few months playing on the Asian Development Tour and the Asian Tour.
It is turning out to be a great time for Indian-origin players as Aaron Rai won the PGA Championship for his maiden Major, and now Shah will make his debut in a Major. “To play a Major is just amazing, and I have had a great run at the AM Green IGPL, and now I get to the US Open,” said Shah.
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Shah shot rounds of 66-71 to total 7-under and finish fourth in the 36-hole final qualifying tournament held at the Dallas Athletic Club. That earned him a spot in the 2026 U.S. Shah finished the sectional qualifier in fourth place at 5-under after shooting 5-under 66 and even par 71 to earn one of the highly coveted spots in the major championship field.
It will be his maiden major championship appearance. The 2026 U.S. Open takes place at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.
The 33-year-old Manav’s parents are of Indian origin and he grew up in Bakersfield, California, playing on local public courses before playing collegiate golf for the UCLA Bruins. He graduated in 2015 with a degree in Political Science. Shah has won 8 professional titles globally.
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His most prominent victory came at the 2022 Quito Open on the PGA Tour Latinoamérica, making him only the second Indian-American player to win a PGA Tour-sanctioned event. The first was Arjun Awal, who won the Wyndham Championship in 2010.
Shah, who now plays on the IGPL tour in India, earned full playing status on the Asian Tour through Q-School and recently played in the International Series. The Dallas qualifier was won by Peter Uihlein (67-66) and Tom Kim (66-68) was second. Cooper Dossey (65-70) was third.
