Thai contingent look to capitalise on home advantage
A strong local contingent will be among the challengers as the Asian Tour swings into Thailand for back-to-back tournaments on The International Series, the 10 elevated events that form a pathway onto the LIV Golf League.
The inaugural Black Mountain Championship takes place next week at the iconic Black Mountain Golf Club from 17-20 October, with the third edition of International Series Thailand taking place a week later at the Thai Country Club in Bangkok from 24-27 October.
A host of top local talent will be aiming for glory in an elite international field that contains LIV Golf League stars and the cream of the Asian Tour.
Sadom Kaewkanjana is currently the highest challenger on The International Series Rankings, at No.11 thanks largely to his impressive fourth-placed finish at International Series England last time out in August.
David Boriboonsub. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
David Boriboonsub, a winner of three titles on the spin late last year, is next best at 24th and last season’s Volvo China Open champion Sarit Suwannarut sits 30th in part due to his season-high T14 on the series at International Series Oman.
Sadom, a two-time Asian Tour champion, is excited to be playing consecutive elevated events home soil. He said: “Having back-to-back tournaments in Thailand this year is such an honour. I’m very excited to tee off in front of the home crowds and have my family be there to support me.
“I think it’s always exciting to see Thai flags at the top of the leaderboard and it would be even more special to have a Thai player win on home soil.
“The competition is definitely tougher this year with more LIV Golf players in the field. It is a good opportunity and experience for Thai golfers to be able to play against great golfers, and in the long run, with all the big-name players joining the tour, it will help expand the game of golf in Asia and potentially create more opportunities for Asian golfers.”
Boriboonsub, the 2023 Saudi Open presented by PIF champion on the Asian Tour, echoed Sadom’s thoughts, stating: “I’m really excited about having both the Black Mountain Championship and International Series Thailand back-to-back this season. Competing in two tournaments in home conditions is definitely an advantage for me and the other Thai players.
“We’ll have the opportunity to leverage our familiarity with the courses and the local conditions, which can help us perform at our best. Additionally, playing in front of home crowds is always motivating. I’m looking forward to the challenges ahead.”
Sarit Suwannarut. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
Sarit, a two-time champion on The International Series with a win at the BNI Indonesian Masters in 2022 as well as his runaway Volvo China Open victory in 2023, emphasised the ever-growing challenge at events on The International Series as he said: “The competition is getting stronger and stronger on the Asian Tour now.
“The cut line is getting higher and the winner score is getting lower, due to the LIV Golf players competing and the players now competing from all over the world from countries like Australia and the USA.
“The Asian Tour players can now compete with the best in the world and that has a real benefit for everyone involved. Everyone wants to win but it would be really good if a Thai player could do it.”
Phachara Khongwatmai, who represented Thailand at the Olympic Games earlier this year and finished runner-up at International Series Thailand two years ago, is also in the field alongside countrymen Poom Saksansin and Suradit Yongcharoenchai, two talented home hopes who proved their credentials by finishing in the top 10 of the innovative LIV Golf Promotions event last year, giving them playing rights for all 10 events this season.
Seven-time Asian Tour winner and 2019 Order of Merit champion Jazz Janewattananond is another big name in the field hoping for home advantage alongside three-time Asian Tour champion Nitithorn Thippong, the 2022 International Series Singapore winner.
Suteepat Prateeptienchai is in red-hot form and the highest Thai on the Asian Tour Order of Merit at No.8 after his wire-to-wire victory at the Yeangder TPC last month, while Chonlatit Chuenboonngam, next highest at 17, will also be one to watch.
Chonlatit narrowly lost out to Australian Wade Ormsby last year on the first hole of a sudden-death play-off for the International Series Thailand title at Black Mountain Golf Club.
Pavit Tangkamolprasert, joint second in the Mercuries Taiwan Masters at the weekend, is also in both fields.
After a marathon weekend of 54 holes of golf played, due to Thursday and Friday’s play being washed out because of Typhoon Krathon, it was South African Jbe Kruger who came out on top after a tight battle with Jeunghun Wang from Korea.
Tied for the lead going into the last hole at Taiwan Golf and Country Club, Kruger made a birdie on 18 while Wang dropped a shot. He gave the South African a two-shot victory over the Korean and Thailand’s Pavit Tangkamolprasert.
The notoriously tricky Tamsui Course at Taiwan Golf and Country Club did not give up many low scores during the week – the lowest being five-under-par 67 by Wang, Lu Sun-yi, Trevor Simsby, Jaco Ahlers and Chonlatit Chuenboonngam. Kruger’s eight-under-par winning score is also the highest on the Asian Tour so far this season.
Kruger’s approach game was impressive considering Tamsui’s small greens; he missed only 12 greens for a Greens in Regulation (GIR) percentage of 77.78% to rank second in this statistics category for the week.
Pavit Tangkamolprasert. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
He also had a good week off the tee and on the greens, ranking joint sixth in Driving Accuracy and equal fifth in Putts per GIR, with 54.76% and 1.67 respectively.
Wang, who led for a big part of the final round, was solid across the board and ranked ninth in Putts per GIR with 1.69, and tied 16 in GIR with 64.81%, plus 16th in Driving Distance with 297.5 yards.
Pavit, who birdied his final hole to grab a share of second place, led the field in Putts per GIR with 1.56 and was joint second in Putts per Round with a 26.6 average. He was also tied top for the most Birdies for the week on 15, with Kruger, Michael Maguire, and Nitithorn Thippong.
Their excellent results in Taipei meant big jumps on the Asian Tour Order of Merit for Kruger and Pavit, with the South African moving from 69th to 10th, and the Thai from 40th to 18th respectively.
Wang, who was sitting in 15th place before the week began thanks to a runner up at the IRS Prima Malaysian Open and a equal eigtht at the International Series Morocco, moved up five spots to number 10.
Statistics Categories leaders at the Mercuries Taiwan Masters (of players making the cut):
- Putts per Round: S.S.P. Chawrasia (IND) 26.33
- Putts per GIR: Pavit Tangkamolprasert (THA) 1.56
- Greens In Regulation: Maverick Antcliff (AUS) 81.48%
- Fairways Hit: Poom Saksansin (THA) 71.43%
- Driving Distance: Wang Wei-hsuan (TPE) 327.5 Yards
- Most Eagles: Trevor Simsby (USA) 2
- Most Birdies: Jbe Kruger (RSA), Pavit Tangkamolprasert (THA), Michael Maguire (USA), Nitithorn Thippong (THA) 15
- Fewest Bogies or Worse: Rashid Khan (IND) 5
- Scrambling: Austen Truslow (USA) 87.5%
Jbe Kruger triumphed at the US$1 million Mercuries Taiwan Masters today – for his first victory on the Asian Tour in five years – after an extraordinary weekend of golf, that saw three rounds played, each shotgun starts, as a result of Typhoon Krathon.
The South African beat Korean Jeunghun Wang and Pavit Tangkamolprasert from Thailand by two shots here at Taiwan Golf & Country Club following a gripping finish.
Kruger and Wang, playing in the final group, reached the 18th tied before the South African made a birdie, from six feet, while the Korean, in trouble off the tee, dropped a shot.
The champion carded a three-under-par 69 to finish the event, which had been reduced to 54 holes, on eight-under. Wang, leader for most of the final day and attempting to win for the first time in seven years, closed with a 73, while Pavit returned a 69.
The extremely poor weather brought by Typhoon Krathon meant no play was possible on Thursday and Friday, meaning there was a strong possibility that the event would be cancelled.
However, with the weather improving considerably the stage was set for a fascinating two days of golf when the tournament’s organisers reverted to a LIV Golf League-style event by playing 54-holes, with each round a shotgun start – a first on the Asian Tour.
The second round finished this morning with Wang carding a 69 for a one-shot lead over Poom Saksansin from Thailand, while Kruger was a shot further back.
Wang, a winner once before on the Asian Tour at the AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open in 2016 and trying to win for the first time since returning from National Service two years ago, had a two-stroke cushion over Kruger at the turn.
Kruger, with his wife Denise caddying for him, caught Wang with a birdie on 13, after the Korean made bogey on 12, and then pulled one ahead with a birdie on 15. Kruger then let Wang back in when he dropped a shot on 16 before the crucial two-shot swing on the last.
It’s a timely win for the South African who was in 69th place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and battling to keep his playing privileges for next year, but he’s moved up to 10th on the Merit list.
“It means the world,” said 38-year-old Kruger, now a three-time winner on the Asian Tour, having won the Shinhan Donghae Open in 2019 and the 2012 Avantha Masters.
“I did not come here with any form. Not been playing great, so it’s unbelievable. It’s been glory to God. With the typhoon, with everything that has been happening.
“I probably made it as hard as I could on myself. I can’t get it on the fairway, I can’t get it on the green, I am trying to make birdies, and then the last hole I hit it in the fairway finally.”
To make the moment event better he was given the Mercuries Taiwan Masters Green Jacket by his good friend and compatriot Jaco Ahlers – the defending champion, who tied for 10th.
Thailand’s Chonlatit Chuenboonngam (70) and Rattanon Wannasrichan (71) plus Indian Yuvraj Singh Sandhu (70) tied for fifth, three back from Kruger.
They head to the SJM Macao Open next week, where Australian Min Woo Lee will attempt to defend his title at Macau Golf & Country Club.
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.
Jaco Ahlers. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
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.
Luke Kwon after winning the 2024 Creator Classic. Picture by Keyur Khamar/PGA TOUR via Getty Images.
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
- Tournament: Mercuries Taiwan Masters
- Date: October 3-6, 2024
- Venue: Taiwan Golf and Country Club, Tamsui Course, Taipei
- Par/Yards: Par 72 / 6,923 Yards
- Purse: US$1million
- Asian Tour leg: 13th event of 2024 season
- Edition of tournament: 38th
- Total number of players: 125
- Format 72-hole stroke play with a cut made after two rounds to the leading 50 pros plus ties
- Social Media Hashtags: #TimeToRise
Chan Shih-chang receives the winner’s trophy from Mr George Wong, chairman of Mercuries Group, at the Mercuries Taiwan Masters in 2022. Picture by Chen So-ko / Asian Tour.
Field Breakdown
- Order of Merit winners: Sihwan Kim (2022), Jazz Janewattananond (2019), Scott Hend (2016)
- Nationalities: 21
- Past winners of tournament in the field: Jaco Ahlers (2023), Chan Shih-chang (2022), Wang Wei-hsuan (2020), Suradit Yongcharoenchai (2019), Lu Wei-chih (2016, 2011, 2005), Scott Hend (2013), Tsai Chi-huang (2012, 2002), Lu Wen-teh (2008, 2007, 1996, 1994), Hsieh Min-nan (1992), Chen Tze-chung (1989)
- Defending champion: Jaco Ahlers (RSA)
- Top contenders: Suteepat Prateeptienchai (THA), Lee Chieh-po (TPE), Miguel Tabuena (PHI), Sarit Suwannarut (THA), Wang Wei-hsuan (TPE)
- Highest ranked player on OWGR: Suteepat Prateeptienchai #329
- Highest ranked player on 2024 Asian Tour Order of Merit: Suteepat Prateeptienchai #8
- Number of amateurs: 5
- Number of Chinese Taipei players in the field: 53
Suteepat Prateeptienchai and his friends celebrate on 18 after winning the Yeangder TPC on Sunday. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
Tournament Notes
- Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai is fresh from his win at the Yeangder TPC last week – his second consecutive Asian Tour win in Chinese Taipei after posting a victory at last year’s Taiwan Glass Taifong Open. In the 2023 edition of the Mercuries Taiwan Masters Suteepat finished T16, a solid finish in which was his first time playing on the historic Tamsui layout. Currently number eight on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, he also posted a T6 at the recent Mandiri Indonesia Open and has a win and a runner-up on the All Thailand Tour in his home country this year.
- Sarit Suwannarut, also from Thailand, is a two-time winner on the Asian Tour and is entering the week with two T6 finishes in his last three events, the Yeangder TPC and the Shinhan Donghae Open. Sarit has made nine out of 10 cuts on the Asian Tour this season and ranks 22nd on the Order of Merit. He finished T3 in 2022 in his lone previous appearance in the tournament.
- Chinese Taipei’s Wang Wei-hsuan won the tournament in 2020 when it was played on the domestic tour during the Covid 19 pandemic. While Wang has not been a regular on the Asian Tour this season, he has posted creditable T8 and T13 finishes in his last two events, the Yeangder TPC and the Mandiri Indonesia Open. He has also collected two victories on the domestic Taiwan PGA Tour this year and sits in fourth place on their Order of Merit.
- The Asian Tour’s highest ranked Chinese Taipei player Lee Chie-po currently sits in 28th place on the Order of Merit and is coming off a very good week at the Yeangder TPC when he finished fourth. At his previous event, the Shinhan Donghae Open, Lee finished T9. He also has a win and three other top fives on the Taiwan PGA domestic tour in 2024 and currently ranks second on that Order of Merit. Although he has not yet won on the Asian Tour, nobody should be surprised if he picked up his maiden Asian Tour victory this week.
- Filipino Miguel Tabuena is starting to pick up the pace in his 2024 campaign and is coming off a third at the Yeangder TPC and a T9 at the Shinhan Donghae Open in his last two events. Add a fifth at the Kolon Korea Open and a T8 and the International Series Morocco and it adds up to a good season so far after slow start. The top-talented Miguena is due for another win after his last triumph that came in the DGC Open in early 2023.
- This week’s host, the iconic Taiwan Golf and Country Club, nicknamed “The Old Tamsui Course” layout, is the oldest club in the country and was established in 1919. The notoriously difficult course, while not long by modern standards, features treelined holes on both sides and what can be very tricky greens for first timers.
- The 66-year-old Chen Tze-chung, also known as “TC”, who is also playing in his home country this week is perhaps mostly known internationally for his T2 finish at the 1985 US Open at Oakland Hills G&CC, where he double hit a chip shot in the final round after leading by two going into Sunday. It should be remembered that Chen was a formidable player in his prime, winning the 1987 Los Angeles Open on the PGA Tour against two-time Masters champion Ben Crenshaw in a play-off. Chen won 16 professional events during his career.
- “TC”s older brother Chen Tze-Ming, known as “TM”, is also in the field this week at the age of 72, and he holds a fantastic professional record of his own. While he’s best known for his T3 finish in the 1985 PGA Championship, three shots behind eventual winner Hubert Green after shooting a final round of 65, “TM” owns 21 global titles as a professional. Nine of the wins came in Japan and seven on the old Asian Circuit. It should also be noted that the Chen family dominated the final round of the 1985 PGA Championship, as the second lowest score on Sunday belonged to his brother “TC” who shot a 66 and finished tied for 23rd.
- The only player to have won the tournament four times is Chinese Taipei’s Lu Wen-teh, first winning the title 30 years ago in 1994 before adding wins in 1996, 2007 and 2008.
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