History-maker Arjun Atwal and Shiv Shankar Prasad Chowrasia, the red-hot youngster on the Indian PGA Tour, both hailing from Kolkata, have been declared 'Hero Honda Golfers of the Month' for their outstanding achievements in November and December respectively.

Atwal, who became the first Indian to qualify for the US PGA Tour and was also crowned the No 1 golfer on the Asian PGA Tour for winning the 2003 Order of Merit, received the award for winning the $300,000 Hero Honda Masters and becoming the first player on the Asian PGA Tour to cross the million-dollar mark in career earnings.

The 30-year-old would have bagged the award for December as well, but the three-member panel decided to give it to his citymate SSP Chowrasia.

The 25-year-old Chowrasia sizzled on the Hero Honda Golf Tour in December, winning both the Noida Open and the Rs 1.5 million Tata Open in Jamshedpur. With the back-to-back victories, he climbed up to No 2 in the Merit List.

"If Atwal is presently the superstar of Indian golf, Chowrasia has the potential of becoming a big star in the future. At Hero Honda Motors Ltd, we recognise excellence and both Atwal and Chowrasia were brilliant in their
own platforms," said Mr Pawan Munjal, Managing Director, Hero Honda Motors Ltd, the umbrella sponsors of the Indian PGA Tour.

The award contains a recognition plaque, a pack of Titleist Pro-V1x balls and gift vouchers from adidas.

"Though I am so far away from home, it feels great that I am being thought about in India. I am proud to represent India on the PGA Tour and I promise my fans that I will be back to play tournaments as soon as possible," said Atwal from his residence in Celebration, Florida.

"For me, what is more important is that my efforts are being recognised. I would like to thank Hero Honda and all involved, and promise that I will continue to work hard for more such awards," said Chowrasia.

The Hero Honda Golfer of the Month award has been instituted by Tour sponsors Hero Honda Motors with the objective of recognising exceptional performance by Indian professional golfers on any Tour in the world.