At the highest level, golf can be a brutally tough and unforgiving game. Just ask Taichi Kho.

Ahead of his Major championship debut in the 151st edition of The Open, the rookie Hong Kong pro exuded an air of quiet confidence. His demeanour was calm and his mood upbeat, writes Spencer Robinson – Contributing Editor, Asian Tour – from Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

After two bruising days trying to navigate his way around Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Kho was shaken and somewhat subdued. Understandably so, given the roller-coaster ride he endured.

Beaten but unbowed, he has vowed to learn from the harsh lessons that were meted out to him. It may take a while for all the scars to heal, but time is very much on the side of this level-headed 22-year-old whose chastening experience has only served to strengthen his resolve,

“It was a tough couple of days but I learned a lot. It was great being in this atmosphere. Something I’ll definitely take forward. I feel I came out a way better player,” he said.

Brave words from a man who ran up seven bogeys in his opening nine holes followed by a quintuple-bogey 10 on the 18th that added up to a 12-over-par 83 and left him propping up the 156-man field. Any hopes of making the cut were well and truly buried in the Hoylake sand.

A six-stroke improvement on day two at least enabled him to move up two spots and avoid the ignominy of finishing last.

In the immediate aftermath of his day one baptism of fire, Kho flatly declined requests to face the media. When questioned after round two, he spoke in thoughtful and measured tones.

“I’m naturally disappointed with the performance, but in the long run everything happens for a reason and I’m sure this week will be quite a helpful part of my career.

“I felt like I hit it pretty decent, but I have to sharpen up all around. I feel like my iron play has been progressing nicely so a lot of positives there,” he reflected.

Possibly the most important takeaway is that you don’t mess with the bunkers on links courses on The Open rota. You respect them at all times, take your medicine when appropriate … and move on.

Referring to his woes on the 18th when he twice failed to extricate himself from a bunker due to an overly ambitious approach, he said: “I was playing great on the back nine and thought if I birdied the last (18th), I could have a shot at the weekend.

“I hit two great shots into that left bunker and just got too aggressive from a bad lie and then kept compounding my mistakes. But I learned from that – and I’ll never do that again.”

With the unpredictable bounces and extreme run on firm fairways, he’ll be more cautious, too, about club selection.

He said: “With this course you can’t really take every bunker out of play. Because if you do, then you’re just really playing for pars. I felt like I had a good strategy to attack this golf course but I didn’t quite execute some shots and I found those bunkers.”

Not that Kho has any issue with the penal bunkering. On the contrary, his assessment is both refreshing and refreshingly honest.

“I think it’s great that when you get into those bunkers it’s a real hazard because I feel like a lot of modern golf courses don’t really do that with the bunkers.

“I appreciate the fact that the course asks a lot of tough questions. Hopefully next time I come back I can handle it a little better.”

It’s that humble and mature outlook which will stand Kho in good stead as he seeks to follow up his famous triumph in the World City Championship over his home course at the Hong Kong Golf Club by establishing himself on the Asian Tour – and earning further Major championship starts.

Now he’s had a taste of the big time, he wants more.

“Here (Royal Liverpool) it just seemed like an ocean of people crossing and lining the fairways. It was really cool. Amazing.

“Just being here and being part of this atmosphere was great. I definitely see myself coming back for a lot more of these.”

To contend at the top level in any sport requires a combination of factors, talent and temperament being high on the list. A generous dose of self-belief does no harm, either.

As he’s proved over the opening two days of the 151st Open Championship, Shubhankar Sharma possesses all of the above attributes, writes Spencer Robinson – Contributing Editor, Asian Tour – from Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

On the occasion of his 27th birthday, Sharma posted an accomplished second round of even-par 71 at Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

While many others were being blown off course by capricious winds, Sharma held firm to cement his place on the first page of the leaderboard, ensuring also he maintained his 100 per cent record of making the cut in all three Opens in which he’s participated.

With a 36-hole aggregate of three-under 139, the 2018 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion heads into the weekend in a share of fourth place with Australians Min Woo Lee and Jason Day.

Seven strokes adrift of pace-setting American left-hander Brian Harman he may be, but Sharma believes that talk about contending to become the first Indian Major winner is far from fanciful.

“Yes, I would like to think so,” he replied politely when asked if he thought his weekend prospects were positive. “If I play the way I have the first few days, make a few more putts, and if I’m in my process, then anything is possible, surely.”

Further insight into his mindset came from his answer as to whether he was aiming to better the previous best Open Championship showing from an Indian, a share of 27th place in 2004 for Jyoti Randhawa, another former Asian Tour Order of Merit champion.

“I don’t want to chase records to be the best Indian. It’s about coming and playing and finishing as high up as possible. I think everyone is playing to win, so that’s more important,” he said, emphatically.

The two Indian golfers who have had the most influence on Sharma are Jeev Milkha Singh and Anirban Lahiri, both with multiple Asian Tour wins to their names.

Sharma said: “Jeev was always the stalwart for us. He was the flag-bearer. He’s a lot older than me, so I never played with him. But he was like a God-figure for us, because he was playing so well.

“I’m closer to Anirban because he’s closer to my age. I learned a lot from him. I used to walk around with him when he was a pro and I was as an amateur.

“We’ve had a host of good players who have done really well, but these two definitely stand out.”

Over the first 36 holes at Hoylake, Sharma has stood out and done very little wrong. The only notable blemish was a double-bogey five at the short 17th when he misjudged the wind, over-clubbed and paid the penalty.

His performance here to date is especially laudable given his limited links experience.

“I’ve not played a lot of links golf, except for the tournaments we’ve had on the European Tour for the past five years – the Scottish, the Irish once in a while now.

“That’s all the experience that I’ve had, along with the two previous Opens that I’ve played. But it’s amazing.

“I’ve always loved links golf. Just watching it on TV, watching the British Open and the different shots that you can play and be creative … it’s definitely up my alley.”

It was supposed to be a dream come true for Taichi Kho. But the Hong Kong player’s Open Championship debut turned into a nightmare as he ran up a 10 at the devilish par-five closing hole at Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

It was an excruciatingly painful conclusion to a trying day in what was his first Major championship round, writes Spencer Robinson – Contributing Editor, Asian Tour – from Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

Eventually signing for a 12-over-par 83, Kho ended the opening round of the 151st Open Championship propping up the 156-strong field.

What was particularly galling for Kho was that he’d shown tremendous fortitude in fighting back well from a nerve-ridden front nine 43 that included seven bogeys and just two pars.

To his credit he re-focused and was rewarded with a string of seven pars from the 10th. When he holed from 27 feet at the short 17th for his first Major championship birdie, an unlikely comeback appeared possible.

But that optimism was short-lived. At the 599-yard 18th, his 313-yard drive found one of Hoylake’s many penal sand traps. Kho’s first two attempts to extricate himself from the bunker proved unsuccessful. The misadventures, sadly, did not stop there.

From sand to rough to bunker to rough he went, his travails as agonising for family and friends who had followed him all the way around as it must have been for him.

Kho finally made it onto the green with his eighth stroke and two-putted from nine feet. It all added up to a quintuple-bogey 10.

Although it would not have been of much comfort or consolation, he was far from the only player to be badly burned at the 18th. Justin Thomas had a nine, Rickie Fowler an eight and Adam Scott was among more than half-a-dozen players who had double-bogey sevens.

Yet so distressed was the usually mild-mannered 22-year-old Kho that he uncharacteristically declined post-round media requests, preferring to keep his own counsel.

The lows he felt as he departed the scene were in stark contrast to the highs of just four months ago when he was feted for winning the World City Championship over his home course at the Hong Kong Golf Club.

Not only did he become the first Hong Kong player to win on the Asian Tour, but it was that performance which secured him his starting place at Royal Liverpool for what was always going to be the most memorable week of his fledgeling professional career.

No matter what he goes on to achieve in the game or how many Majors he appears in, you can be sure that Kho will never forget his Hoylake baptism of fire.

But that’s for the future. Given that he’s scheduled to tee-off at 7.08 am local time in the second round on Friday, the immediate task at hand for Kho is to blank from his mind the first-day mis-adventures that befell him. Easier said than done.

Four months may have elapsed since Taichi Kho’s momentous victory in the inaugural World City Championship. But the ramifications of that historic triumph are still being felt. Report by Spencer Robinson – Contributing Editor, Asian Tour – from Royal Liverpool Golf Club.

In winning at the Hong Kong Golf Club in the third week of March, not only did Kho become the first player from the Special Administrative Region of China to triumph on the Asian Tour.

That stunning success, in what was only his fourth appearance as a professional, earned him a cheque for US$180,000. With the World City Championship designated as part of The Open Qualifying Series, Kho also secured one of the four starting spots on offer for The 151st Open Championship.

The impressive young star is one of 14 Asian Tour members competing this week. The list includes Korean Bio Kim, as he also qualified via the Hong Kong event; Seungsu Han from the United States, who made it through to this week thanks to his victory in the Kolon Korea Open last month; and Thailand’s Jazz Janewattananond, after he survived the 36-hole Final Qualifying event at Royal Porthcawl this month to line up his fourth Open Championship appearance.

“The World City Championship week will undoubtedly be one of the most memorable weeks of my life … no matter what happens going forward,” said the 22-year-old, preparing for his Major championship debut at Royal Liverpool Golf Club on Thursday.

Taichi Kho poses with his caddie prior to The 151st Open at Royal Liverpool Golf Club. Picture by Warren Little/Getty Images.

“To be able to play well at home, in front of the people I grew up with, was honestly a dream come true. It’s set me up for some great opportunities early in my career so I look forward to learning from all that comes at me and hope to play well along the way,” added Kho, who attended the University of Notre Dame from 2018 to 2022.

After the highs of Hong Kong, Kho’s form has fluctuated. But after some time at Royal Liverpool last week scoping out the course, he’s raring to go.

Kho, currently 10th in the Asian Tour Order of Merit standings, said: “I feel mentally and physically ready for the challenge ahead. I’m very grateful to have the opportunity to play golf on the biggest stage and it’s a dream come true.

“I’ve worked on developing feel for different shot shapes and yardages and have worked diligently on my short game leading up to this week.”

He’s also been able to call on a little bit of links experience.

“I played Final Open Qualifying last year after the British Amateur at Royal Lytham and St Anne’s. So, I’ve had some experience playing competitively in these conditions before.

“I’ve taken all of my learning experiences from last year and came to the United Kingdom early to acclimatise myself to this style of golf so I am ready come tournament week,” he said.

Had fortune shone upon him in Dubai in late 2021, Kho would have made his Major debut at St Andrews last year.

Playing in the 13th edition of the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship at Dubai Creek Golf & Yacht Club, Kho ended the regulation 72 holes atop the leaderboard, tied with Japan’s Keita Nakajima, then the number one player in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

In extra time it was Nakajima who prevailed and was rewarded with an invitation to the 2022 US Masters and last year’s 150th Open at St Andrews.

Watching those events on television as Nakajima brushed shoulders with the game’s finest, Kho might easily have felt a twinge of regret.

Not a bit of it. He said: “When I was watching the 2022 Masters Tournament and the 150th Open Championship, it definitely hit me that I can be competitive at that stage.

Kho plays a shot during a practice round at Royal Liverpool. Picture by Warren Little/Getty Images.

“So, it gave me a huge confidence boost and a sense of belonging to be at the professional level. To be at the 151st Open reminds me that everything happens for a reason.”

And now that he’s here, is there any one in particular he’d like to be drawn to play alongside with? “Anyone late Sunday afternoon would be lovely,” he said.

Kho tees off on the first day at 12.09 pm local time with American Zach Fischer and Kyle Barker from South Africa.

Click here for tee times.

Following its successful introduction to the Asian Development Tour (ADT) schedule last season, the BRG Open Golf Championship Da Nang will once again be staged at Da Nang Golf Resort, from 31 August – 2 September.

The event broke new ground in 2022 marking the first time the ADT had visited Vietnam and was won by rising Chinese star Chen Guxin – following a sudden-death play-off against Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines.

This year sees the introduction of SeaBank as the tournament’s newest partner and with this new relationship it is anticipated that the prize money for the event will top the US$75,000 on offer at the inaugural event last year.

“The BRG Open Golf Championship Da Nang is a long-term project with local-promoter, VGS Events, and we welcome the second staging of an important tournament for Vietnam and the Asian Development Tour,” said Ken Kudo, Associate Director, Partnerships, Asian Tour.

“We thank Da Nang Golf Resort for their continued support and look forward to another edition of this popular new event which earned rave reviews from players last year.”

Chen Guxin of China won the inaugural BRG Open last year. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.

The tournament will boast a diverse international field of 144 players from across the region, including 99 ADT members who will play alongside 20 professionals nominated by the Vietnam Golf Association.

Added Kudo: “Importantly, this year’s event will play a key role in promoting the city of Da Nang as a tourist and golfing destination. It is also part of the Da Nang Golf Tourism Festival and will act as a platform to inspire young Vietnamese golfers to pursue professional golf as a career.

“The country enjoyed great success at the SEA Games this year, with Le Khanh Hung winning gold and Nguyen Anh Minh bronze in the men’s individual event. Their performances helped Vietnam claim silver in the team competition, and we are confident the BRG Open Golf Championship Da Nang will build on this momentum.”

Chen’s win last year, fittingly coming on Vietnam’s National Day, was his second on the ADT after claiming the Blue Canyon Classic in May.

Victory for the young Chinese golfer helped him to finish fifth on the Final ADT Order of Merit to secure full playing rights on the 2023 Asian Tour, with the top 10 on the Merit list earning Tour cards for the following season.

Today’s news comes soon after the announcement in May, that the Da Nang Golf Resort had become a member of Asian Tour Destinations – the exclusive network of world-class golfing venues in the region with direct ties to the Asian Tour.

The impressive Da Nang City venue, which boasts two 18-hole courses, one designed by Jack Nicklaus and the other by Greg Norman, became only the second golf club in Vietnam to join ATD, which now boasts a total of 13 members across the region.

The Nicklaus course will be used for the BRG Open Golf Championship Da Nang.