Organisers of the Mercuries Taiwan Masters have, for the second day in-a-row, been forced to postpone the start of Round One after another day of inclement weather caused by Typhoon Krathon.
Round One will commence tomorrow at 7am. It will be a shotgun start with organisers aiming to complete 54 holes over the weekend – here at Taiwan Golf & Country Club.
“We had hoped to start today in order to play as many holes as possible but heavy rain and the lack of time to prepare the course have washed out any chance of this,” said Chokchai Boonprasert, Tournament Director, Asian Tour.
It is the first time in the history of the Asian Tour that a tournament has been reduced to 54-holes over the weekend.
Jaco Ahlers – the serial winner at home in South Africa who has gradually been making a name for himself here in Asia – defends his Mercuries Taiwan Masters title this week hungry for another win in the region.
The US$1 million event tees-off on Thursday at Taiwan Golf & Country Club, one of the toughest courses on the Asian Tour, with Typhoon Krathon ominously approaching and threatening to affect play.
Today’s Pro-Am was cancelled and organisers are closely monitoring the storm to see if it will interfere with the first-round schedule.
Ahlers, however, has a reputation for performing well in difficult conditions, such as here last year, when he was one of only four to finish in red figures.
At the end of a bruising and chastening week he was the last man standing thanks to a gutsy final-round three-under-par 69. His four-day tally of four-under 284 gave him a one-shot win over Indian Chikkarangappa S. with Australian Travis Smyth and Scotsman David Drysdale in joint third – the only other players to better par.
It remains his sole win on the Asian Tour, while on the Sunshine Tour he has triumphed on 12 occasions, including at the Sunbet Challenge in July.
“Great thoughts on being back,” said the 41-year-old this week.
“It’s a bit weird driving up and seeing your face on the boards. I don’t have bad memories around here as last year was my first time here. Looking forward to playing if we get to play with the typhoon coming.
“It was hard last year, very hard but it is a lot softer this year. The greens are really good. I think the scoring should be a bit better. It’s very playable.”
His winning score was in fact the highest on the Asian Tour last year and he went to finish 13th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
He is currently in 55th position and with nine events remaining this season he is focused on closing the gap between his number of wins in South Africa compared with Asia.
“We definitely want to win another event. If we can do it in the next six weeks it will be event nicer, we will keep on trying,” added the South African, whose brother Hein is here caddying for him, as was the case last year.
“I just need to do the same things, try and hit the fairways and make some putts; get there on Sunday and see if we have a chance.
“I have worked a bit, with my coach, worked on my swing, so my ball striking is really good. The putting was not good last week.
“The season has been a bit up and down, not really very consistent. South Africa has been ok. This is a good stretch. I will see what we can do for the next six weeks.”
He has been paired with Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai, winner of last week’s Yeangder TPC, also in Chinese-Taipei, and Chan Shih-chang, the Mercuries Taiwan Masters champion two years ago, from Chinese-Taipei in the first two rounds.
In an innovative move which taps into the rapidly evolving media landscape, three popular golf content creators have been invited to play in the next two of 10 International Series events on the Asian Tour calendar: the Black Mountain Championship and International Series Thailand.
LIV Golf League’s Crushers GC player Paul Casey has already been confirmed for the double header in Thailand alongside The International Series Rankings leader John Catlin and nearest challenger Ben Campbell, with more stars to be announced soon.
And now three other notable names in the modern-day golf world will be set to test themselves alongside the cream of the Asian Tour while also shining the spotlight on the experience of playing an elevated Asian Tour event.
Luke Kwon, the popular Korean-born influencer with over 290,000 YouTube subscribers and 240,000 Instagram followers, will line up at the Black Mountain Championship, the fifth event on The International Series and 17th event on the Asian Tour, from 17-20 October.
Kwon, a former PGA Tour China champion who also played on PGA Tour Latinoamerica, won this season’s inaugural Creator Classic, the tournament for content creators which took place on the sidelines of the PGA Tour’s season-ending TOUR Championship.
New Zealander Tae-Wook Koh, better known to millions of online golf fans as Taco Golf, is also in the field at Black Mountain Golf Club. Koh, who has well over a quarter of a million followers and subscribers across his channels, previously played on the PGA Tour of Australasia and was New Zealand PGA Champion in 2021.
Canada’s Mac Boucher, a former professional turned influencer well known for his incredible ball control and trick-shot routines which include perfect left-handed tee shots with a right-handed driver upside down, received an invite for International Series Thailand at Thai Country Club in Bangkok the following week.
Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & CEO of the Asian Tour, said: “This approach highlights our innovative approach at the Asian Tour in our rapidly evolving world where content consumption is often down to the individual.
“Offering these three talented golfers the chance to experience our elevated events is a way in which we can grow the game and grow our audience while gaining better brand awareness through different mediums including the influencer space. “
Rahul Singh, Head of The International Series, said: “The popularity of The International Series is no secret among professional players, with its guaranteed pathway to the LIV Golf League, elevated tournaments at world-class destinations and its quality fields, and it is exciting to be able to lift the curtain on the events for an important audience segment, through the participation of Luke Kwon, Taco Golf and Mac Boucher.”
Kwon said: “We are honoured to have the opportunity to merge content creation with professional golf. Thank you to the Asian Tour and its forward-thinking leadership for initiating this collaboration. We hope to continue growing the game of golf worldwide.”
“We’re incredibly excited to film ourselves competing in the Black Mountain Championship. I have fond memories of competing in the Asian region and I am excited to return. Thank you to everyone involved for this opportunity,” added Koh.
Boucher said: “This will be one of the coolest experiences of my golf career, teeing it up alongside some of the world’s best. I cannot thank the Asian Tour and The International Series enough for having me out to Thai Country Club to play International Series Thailand.”
The back-to-back Thai events launch a thrilling six-tournament stretch over eight weeks to decide The International Series, the set of 10 elevated events on the Asian Tour that offer a pathway onto the LIV Golf League.
For more information on The International Series please visit www.internationalseries.com
Tournament Information
Field Breakdown
Tournament Notes
Round One will commence tomorrow at 7am at Taiwan Golf and Country Club
Organisers of the Mercuries Taiwan Masters have, for the second day in-a-row, been forced to postpone the start of Round One after another day of inclement weather caused by Typhoon Krathon.
Round One will commence tomorrow at 7am. It will be a shotgun start with organisers aiming to complete 54 holes over the weekend – here at Taiwan Golf & Country Club.
“We had hoped to start today in order to play as many holes as possible but heavy rain and the lack of time to prepare the course have washed out any chance of this,” said Chokchai Boonprasert, Tournament Director, Asian Tour.
It is the first time in the history of the Asian Tour that a tournament has been reduced to 54-holes over the weekend.
The US$1 million event tees-off on Thursday with Typhoon Krathon ominously approaching
Jaco Ahlers – the serial winner at home in South Africa who has gradually been making a name for himself here in Asia – defends his Mercuries Taiwan Masters title this week hungry for another win in the region.
The US$1 million event tees-off on Thursday at Taiwan Golf & Country Club, one of the toughest courses on the Asian Tour, with Typhoon Krathon ominously approaching and threatening to affect play.
Today’s Pro-Am was cancelled and organisers are closely monitoring the storm to see if it will interfere with the first-round schedule.
Ahlers, however, has a reputation for performing well in difficult conditions, such as here last year, when he was one of only four to finish in red figures.
At the end of a bruising and chastening week he was the last man standing thanks to a gutsy final-round three-under-par 69. His four-day tally of four-under 284 gave him a one-shot win over Indian Chikkarangappa S. with Australian Travis Smyth and Scotsman David Drysdale in joint third – the only other players to better par.
It remains his sole win on the Asian Tour, while on the Sunshine Tour he has triumphed on 12 occasions, including at the Sunbet Challenge in July.
“Great thoughts on being back,” said the 41-year-old this week.
“It’s a bit weird driving up and seeing your face on the boards. I don’t have bad memories around here as last year was my first time here. Looking forward to playing if we get to play with the typhoon coming.
“It was hard last year, very hard but it is a lot softer this year. The greens are really good. I think the scoring should be a bit better. It’s very playable.”
His winning score was in fact the highest on the Asian Tour last year and he went to finish 13th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
He is currently in 55th position and with nine events remaining this season he is focused on closing the gap between his number of wins in South Africa compared with Asia.
“We definitely want to win another event. If we can do it in the next six weeks it will be event nicer, we will keep on trying,” added the South African, whose brother Hein is here caddying for him, as was the case last year.
“I just need to do the same things, try and hit the fairways and make some putts; get there on Sunday and see if we have a chance.
“I have worked a bit, with my coach, worked on my swing, so my ball striking is really good. The putting was not good last week.
“The season has been a bit up and down, not really very consistent. South Africa has been ok. This is a good stretch. I will see what we can do for the next six weeks.”
He has been paired with Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai, winner of last week’s Yeangder TPC, also in Chinese-Taipei, and Chan Shih-chang, the Mercuries Taiwan Masters champion two years ago, from Chinese-Taipei in the first two rounds.
Mac Boucher, Luke Kwon and Taco Golf to star at the two International Series events in Thailand this month
In an innovative move which taps into the rapidly evolving media landscape, three popular golf content creators have been invited to play in the next two of 10 International Series events on the Asian Tour calendar: the Black Mountain Championship and International Series Thailand.
LIV Golf League’s Crushers GC player Paul Casey has already been confirmed for the double header in Thailand alongside The International Series Rankings leader John Catlin and nearest challenger Ben Campbell, with more stars to be announced soon.
And now three other notable names in the modern-day golf world will be set to test themselves alongside the cream of the Asian Tour while also shining the spotlight on the experience of playing an elevated Asian Tour event.
Luke Kwon, the popular Korean-born influencer with over 290,000 YouTube subscribers and 240,000 Instagram followers, will line up at the Black Mountain Championship, the fifth event on The International Series and 17th event on the Asian Tour, from 17-20 October.
Kwon, a former PGA Tour China champion who also played on PGA Tour Latinoamerica, won this season’s inaugural Creator Classic, the tournament for content creators which took place on the sidelines of the PGA Tour’s season-ending TOUR Championship.
New Zealander Tae-Wook Koh, better known to millions of online golf fans as Taco Golf, is also in the field at Black Mountain Golf Club. Koh, who has well over a quarter of a million followers and subscribers across his channels, previously played on the PGA Tour of Australasia and was New Zealand PGA Champion in 2021.
Canada’s Mac Boucher, a former professional turned influencer well known for his incredible ball control and trick-shot routines which include perfect left-handed tee shots with a right-handed driver upside down, received an invite for International Series Thailand at Thai Country Club in Bangkok the following week.
Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & CEO of the Asian Tour, said: “This approach highlights our innovative approach at the Asian Tour in our rapidly evolving world where content consumption is often down to the individual.
“Offering these three talented golfers the chance to experience our elevated events is a way in which we can grow the game and grow our audience while gaining better brand awareness through different mediums including the influencer space. “
Rahul Singh, Head of The International Series, said: “The popularity of The International Series is no secret among professional players, with its guaranteed pathway to the LIV Golf League, elevated tournaments at world-class destinations and its quality fields, and it is exciting to be able to lift the curtain on the events for an important audience segment, through the participation of Luke Kwon, Taco Golf and Mac Boucher.”
Kwon said: “We are honoured to have the opportunity to merge content creation with professional golf. Thank you to the Asian Tour and its forward-thinking leadership for initiating this collaboration. We hope to continue growing the game of golf worldwide.”
“We’re incredibly excited to film ourselves competing in the Black Mountain Championship. I have fond memories of competing in the Asian region and I am excited to return. Thank you to everyone involved for this opportunity,” added Koh.
Boucher said: “This will be one of the coolest experiences of my golf career, teeing it up alongside some of the world’s best. I cannot thank the Asian Tour and The International Series enough for having me out to Thai Country Club to play International Series Thailand.”
The back-to-back Thai events launch a thrilling six-tournament stretch over eight weeks to decide The International Series, the set of 10 elevated events on the Asian Tour that offer a pathway onto the LIV Golf League.
For more information on The International Series please visit www.internationalseries.com
All you need to know about the 38th edition of the Mercuries Taiwan Masters
Tournament Information
Field Breakdown
Tournament Notes
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