OWGR Watch- Week 32

Published on August 6, 2019

Sentosa, Singapore, August 6: Last week’s Wyndham Championship on the PGA Tour was the last event of the regular season before the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and Asian Tour was represented by Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Anirban Lahiri and Monday qualifier Paul Peterson.

The event had big implications for Lahiri. Heading into the week in 178^th place on the FedEx Cup Standings, he would have needed a tied-second finish at Wyndham to get inside the top-125 and keep his card, or a tied-fourth for top-150 and conditional status for next season.

With a score of eight-under-par 272 the 2015 Order of Merit champion finished tied-53^rd, and will now have to play the three events on the Korn Ferry Tour Finals starting next week in order to regain his PGA Tour playing rights.

Thailand’s Kiradech has already secured his card for next year by being well inside the top 125 and will be playing in the first play-off event this week- The Northern Trust in New Jersey. Kiradech is currently ranked 76^th in the standings and will have get inside the top-70 in order to advance to the BMW Championship, the next event in the play-offs. He’s as of this week 44 points behind Matthew Wolff in 70^th place.

At last week’s Wyndham Championship Kiradech got off to a hot start with a six-under-par 64 in the first round, but the following rounds of 72, 69, and 68 meant he would finish the week in tied-60^th place on the low-scoring course.

On the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) Kiradech lost five spots and is now 59^th on the updated list, while in the Presidents Cup Standings he has fallen two spots to 20^th with two weeks to go before the cut-off date for the automatic selections which is due on August 18^th.

The two other Asian Tour members in the top 100 on the OWGR, Justin Harding and Jazz Janewattananond, did not play any event last week and dropped one position each to 52^nd and 54^th respectively.

Both are also in the running for a place on captain Ernie Els’s squad for the Presidents Cup in December.

Jazz is currently ranked ninth, one spot outside an automatic selection, and has one event remaining, the Sarawak Championship August 15-18. He will likely need at least a solo-second in Sarawak to avoid relying on a captain’s pick.

Harding has a little more work to do as he’s 11^th in the standings and will need to make up 12 points on the currently eight-placed C.T. Pan from Chinese Taipei. For an automatic selection he will need a win at his next event, likely the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals series August 15-18.

Published on August 2, 2019

The Asian Tour has welcomed many worthy champions into the winner’s circle. While many of them are still making their mark on the Tour and beyond, some have decided to put away their clubs but have continued to leave an impression on us.

In our first instalment of our ‘Where are they now?’ series, we spoke to Kyi Hla Han, who was the Asian Tour’s Executive Chairman for several years and is best remembered for winning the Volvo China Open and Asian Tour Order of Merit in 1999.

After ruling the fairways for more than two decades, Han is still very much passionate about the sport which brought him much success and even introduced him to his wife in Hong Kong.

So tell us, how did you get started in professional golf and the Asian Tour back in 1994-95?

KHH: I turned professional in December 1980 at the World Cup in Bogota, Colombia. I was 19 and still in University but wanted to turn professional badly then. I started playing the old Asian Circuit in 1981 which was basically about nine to 10 National Opens over a 10-week period run by the Asia Pacific Golf Confederation (APGC). There were also a few professional events in South East Asia which would be the equivalent to what we have with the Asian Development Tour now. I won over a dozen of them, like the Malaysian and Thai PGA Championships and the Malaysian Masters.

Since the old Asian Circuit was much smaller than the Asian Tour is now, what did you do when there were no events in Asia?

KHH: I wanted to play more events, so I went to play in Australia, Europe and Japan because I felt like there were not enough tournaments in Asia. I met my wife Marlene in Hong Kong where she was living at the time, and in 1993, she was approached by a sports marketing company that wanted to start up a Tour with about 20 events in Asia. I was asked to help structure the Tour from a player’s point of view, and in 1995 the Asian PGA Tour was launched with me and Dom Boulet as its founding members. At the time I still had a card on the Japan Golf Tour (JGTO), so I didn’t really play the Asian PGA Tour until 1996.

Except for winning some of the smaller events which you mentioned earlier, you must have won bigger ones as well?

KHH: Yeah, I won the Singapore Open in 1994 which was an event on the Australian Tour then, and also the 1997 Rolex Singapore Masters. But the highlight of my career was definitely in 1999 when I won the Asian Tour Order of Merit along with the Volvo China Open.

How many years did you play on the Asian Tour before you retired and transitioned into management?

KHH: After I won the Order of Merit in 1999 I was trying to raise my game but I felt like I wasn’t improving enough to get to the next level, to play on the European Tour or PGA TOUR. In 2003, there was talk among players who wanted us to form our own Association, so we split from the Asian PGA and founded the Asian Tour in 2004. Me and five other players were the founding members, and I served as the Chairman of the Tour. I was pretty involved even though I was playing. My game was still ok and I was younger so I thought I could do both. But by 2006 I had a lot of injuries, so I stopped playing and took over as Executive Chairman later that year. Being on the management side is totally different to being a player. But it was a good experience as I got to understand both sides of the sport.

How do you feel now when you see all these young Asian players coming up and venturing out in the world, instead of in the past where most players wanted to play only in Asia?

KHH: I think it’s fantastic and it’s always been my goal to see our players to be on the world stage. It’s great to see young guys like Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Jazz Janewattananond, Anirban Lahiri and Gavin Green coming up as it was always the intention for the Tour to create a pathway for players to become world class champions.

After 25 years of playing and 12 years in Asian Tour’s management, you are still serving on the Asian Tour’s Board of Directors. But outside of the Tour, what are you up to these days?

KHH: I’ve always loved golf course design and it was something I wanted to pursue. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to design a course in Dalat, Vietnam (The Dalat at 1200 Country Club), and to be involved as a signature designer in a Schmidt-Curley Golf Design project near Mandalay, Myanmar. I have a partner in my golf design business, Sam Sakocius who has a vast knowledge of course construction. I was also approached by some people to start the Junior Golf Tour of Asia (JGTA) that is associated with the American Junior Golf Assiciation (AJGA), which basically helps our junior players get into colleges in the U.S. on golf scholarships. The Tour is for boys and girls aged between 12 to 18 years old. We have finished two seasons of the JGTA and so far seven of our players have received scholarships to Division I colleges in the U.S.

We know that you are also involved in music and playing a lot of guitar?

KHH: Yes, I’ve always been into classic rock from the 60’s and 70’s and played some guitar in my teenage years, I’ve always loved music. When I started living in Singapore, I was always going out to the bars and restaurants to listen to music. It was there where I met up with two guys that played that kind of music. I became good friends with one of them who is now one of the top guitarists in Singapore- Robyn Anthony. I get involved in gigs with them at clubs, bars and private homes and it’s really fun. Playing music is very relaxing and it’s good to have a new challenge.

Kyi Hla and the band at the 2018 LeoPalace21 Myanmar Open

Being a top player and out on tour for a long time, is there anything you miss about the Tour?

KHH: The comradery, and how you remain friends with fellow players even for a long time away from the Tour. I do miss all my friends out on tour. I have a lot of good stories and memories from the Tour, but I think the players are probably a little more serious now than we used to be. When we were out there were a lot of players with their own character, but they all played well.

So, what’s a good story?

KHH: I just met up with Danny Mjiovic from Canada in Toronto a few weeks ago, he used to play the Tour about 20 years ago and he was actually the guy that introduced me to my wife Marlene! One of the most memorable moments on Tour was back in 2000. After I won the 1999 Order of Merit, they paired me with Tiger Woods in the Johnnie Walker Classic after he had just won four Majors in a row. That was a real highlight.

Any other hobbies or interests taking up your time nowadays?

KHH: I am also getting involved in doing more charity projects to help children in Myanmar. I feel that I have been very blessed in my life, and it’s time to help the children that are not as fortunate. Our two daughters just graduated from college in Canada this year, so I have more time to pursue all my different interests and keep myself busy.

Ends.

About Kyi Hla Han

Country: Myanmar

Date of Birth: February 13, 1961

Residence: Singapore

Turned Pro: 1980

Twitter Handle: @kyi_hla

Family: Married, Wife: Marlene, Daughters: Natasha and Kaitlyn

ASIAN TOUR VICTORIES: (1) 1999 Volvo China Open

ASIAN CIRCUIT VICTORIES: (1) 1997 Rolex Singapore Masters

AUSTRALASIAN TOUR VICTORIES: (1) 1994 Epson Singapore Open

OTHER WINS: (14) 1983 and 1984 Dunlop Malaysian Masters

1983 and 1985 Malaysian PGA Championship

1985 and 1988 Thailand PGA Championship

1985 Royal Johor Championship

1985 and 1988 PFP Malaysia Championship

1994 and 1995 Hong Kong PGA Championship

1994 Johor Masters

1988 Tourism Malaysia Events in Penang and Miri

AMATEUR WINS: (3) 1980 Putra Cup, 1977 and 1978 Burma Amateur Open

OTHERS: Represented Myanmar in World Cup Golf in 1980, 1999, 2001, 2003 and 2004.

Represented Myanmar National Amateur Team 1977-1980.

Published on July 30, 2019

Sentosa, Singapore, July 30: Last week’s WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational saw four Asian Tour members in the field, and of those the player with the highest OWGR ranking also posted the best result in the tournament.

South African Justin Harding was in tied-18^th position going into Sunday after a six-under-par 64 in the third round, and had an outside chance to secure a PGA Tour card for next season with a low final round.

Needing at least a top-five finish, which would have required a 63 in the fourth round, Harding was unable to replicate Saturday’s stellar round and instead signed for a 74 and a tied 43^rd place.

With only one event remaining on the PGA Tour schedule before the play-offs, Harding will now have to play the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, if he so chooses, to gain a PGA Tour card for next season.

Harding who was ranked 51^st on the OWGR last week, remains so on the updated list.

He is currently in 11^th place in the Presidents Cup standings, with likely only one qualifying event available to him remaining.

Order of Merit leader Jazz Janewattananond did not play any event last week and stays in 53^rd place on the OWGR.

He also remains in ninth place in the Presidents Cup standings for the international team, one spot outside the automatic selections.

Jazz will likely need at least a top-three finish in his last qualifying event, the Sarawak Championship August 15-18, in order to avoid hoping for a captain’s pick from Ernie Els.

Like his countryman above, the 2013 Order of Merit champion Kiradech Aphibarnrat did not play last week following his personal best finish of tied-32^nd in The Open, and remains in 54^th place on the OWGR.

Kiradech will be playing in the Wyndham Championship on the PGA Tour this week and will be trying to make up some ground in the Presidents Cup race.

He is currently in 18^th place in the standings, 38 points behind the current last automatic spot holder C.T. Pan of Taiwan.

Published on July 25, 2019

Sentosa, Singapore, July 23: With 16 Asian Tour members teeing it up in The 148^th Open last week and five of them making the cut, the biggest gain on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) belongs to Sanghyun Park of Korea, the 2018 Rookie of the Year.

Park put on a solid performance all week at Royal Portrush to finish the week tied for 16^th place. A final round of two-over-par 73 in difficult conditions meant he missed out on a top-10 finish by only two shots but it was stilla very creditable result in what was only his second Open start.

Park gains 18 places in the rankings and sits in 123^rd position on this week’s OWGR list.

Currently the highest ranked Asian Tour member on the OWGR, Justin Harding of South Africa started his Open week in great fashion, and was sitting in tied-fifth place on six-under-par after rounds of 71 and 65.

The unforgiving Dunluce Links, however, took its toll on Harding on the weekend and after posting 74 and 76 in the final two rounds he finished the championship tied for 41^st place. The two-time Asian Tour winner loses one place on the OWGR and drops outside the top-50 to 51^st position.

Order of Merit leader Jazz Janewattananond did not have the Open experience he was hoping for, missing the cut by four shots after rounds of 74 and 73 on the challenging links layout.

The SMBC Singapore Open and Kolon Korea Open champion still maintains his ranking of 53^rd on the OWGR, just shy of his career high.

Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat finished the championship in style with a four-under-par 67 on Sunday for a tied-32^nd place, one-over-par for the week and his best Open result so far.

Nonetheless, he still loses ground on the OWGR and drops two spots to 54^th place, one behind his countryman Jazz.

Published on July 17, 2019

By V.Krishnaswamy at Royal Portrush

Portrush, Northern Ireland, July 17: Shubhankar Sharma, the only Indian in the field for The 148th Open can draw strength from a very interesting fact about Royal Portrush.

When the last big event, the Irish Open, was held here at the Royal Portrush in 2012, it was none other than his senior, mentor and idol, Jeev Milkha Singh, who held a share of the first round lead.

Singh shot a first round card of 65 and he co-led with Gregory Bourdy. However by the end of the week, Jeev slipped and finished T-30.

It was a very memorable Irish Open for Singh, who before the tournament, was presented with a bottle of 21 year old Bushmills single malt whisky by Northern Ireland’s golfing legend Darren Clarke.

At that time Singh had said, , “The atmosphere and the feel to the golf course is fantastic. When you have so many people cheering and watching you I think you feel great.”

More than 30,000 people turned up to watch the final day, when Welshman Jamie Donaldson won with a final round 66. Singh shot rounds of 65, 71, 75 and 71 and was tied-30th.

Interestingly, the field included Clarke, Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy, the three Major Champions whose success has helped the game grow in Northern Ireland. They had the biggest galleries but were unable to break 70 on the first day. By the end of the week, McIlroy was T-10, McDowell was T-16 and Clarke T-39.

Behind Donaldson (68, 67, 69 and 66; 270) were Spain’s Rafa Cabrera-Bello, Anthony Wall and Fabrizio Zanotti in Tied-second, who were four shots behind the winner.

That year Singh was one of the three Indians – Shiv Kapur and SSP Chawrasia – and the field also included Thongchai Jaidee, who with rounds of 67-72-74-66 ended tied-18th and Jeev was tied-30th.

Kapur (74-69) missed the cut by one shot and Chawrasia (78-73) missed it by a big margin.

Singh waxed eloquent about his love for Links golf, saying, “My first experience as a 16-year-old in Links golf was rounds of 87 and 84 in Wales in an Amateur championship. I thought ‘My God, this is tough’. I wasn’t used to wearing raingear.”

“In Links golf, you have to hit a lot of low shots and you have to have a lot of imagination.” He added. “I think a lot of feel and imagination is required, and that’s what I love about links golf.”

Singh took part in nine Irish Opens and made the cut in five with a best of tied-11 in 2011.

The Irish Open had come back to Portrush after a gap of 65 years in 2012 – they last held the Irish Open in 1947. Now, The Open, which was last held here in 1951 returns to Portrush after a gap of 68 years.

A total of 16 Asian Tour members will tee off on Thursday, including Sharma. Thailand has the most members with four. Jazz Janewattananond, who leads the current Asian Tour Order of Merit, PGA TOUR member Kiradech Aphibarnrat. Gunn Charoenkul and Prom Meesawat came through International qualifiers.

Japan has the next highest among Asian nationalities with Asian Tour membership, with three and Republic of Korea has three players who are Asian Tour members.

Overall, Japan has eight (including four non-member professionals and one amateur), Korea has eight (including five non-members).

The 16 Asian Tour members this week are:
Thailand: Four (Jazz Janewattananond, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Gunn Charoenkul and Prom Meesawat)
Japan: Three (Yosuke Asaji, Mikumu Horikawa and Yuta Ikeda)
Korea: Three (Dongkyu Jang, Doyeob Mun and Sanghyun Park)
United States: Two (David Lipsky and Kurt Kitayama)
South Africa: Two (Justin Harding and Shaun Norris)
Australia: One (Jake McLeod)
India: One (Shubhankar Sharma)

Ends.

Published on

Sentosa, Singapore, July 17: The 148th Open gets underway on Thursday but before it does, we take a look at where our players currently stand on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).

South African Justin Harding managed to secure his place at next week’s World Golf Championships-St. Jude Invitational in Memphis, Tennessee, despite missing the cut at the European Tour’s ASI Scottish Open.

Placed 48^th on the OWGR prior to the Scottish Open, Harding slipped two spots to 50^th on the rankings to barely make the cut-off mark following the first qualifying date on July 15.

There is, however, another cut-off date for the event on July 22 and two players just outside top-50 can still look to qualify with solid showings at The Open this week.

Former Order of Merit winner Kiradech Aphibarnrat made the five-under-par cut in Scotland after rounds of 71 and 66 but finished the event in 80^th place and missed out on the OWGR points.

Kiradech slipped one spot to 52^nd this week and will need to make up at least two places to qualify for next week’s WGC event.

A two-time winner in 2019 at the SMBC Singapore Open and Kolon Korea Open, Jazz Janewattanaond took last week off to rest and prepare for this week’s Open at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland.

Like his countryman Kiradech, Jazz, the current Asian Tour Order of Merit leader, also dropped a spot to 53^rd place on the OWGR.

With 100 OWGR points on offer at The Open, Jazz will be looking to put up a fine performance to break into the world’s top-50 and earn his place in the Memphis field.

Ends.

Published on July 16, 2019

By Olle Nordberg, Former Asian Tour and European Tour professional

The oldest of the four Majors at 160 years old, The Open was established in 1860 and will mark its 148^th edition this year.

With Northern Ireland hosting the championship this year, it will be only the second time in the history of the event that it is held outside of Scotland and England. The lone previous exception was in 1951 when it was played on the same course.

Prize money for 2019 will be $10.75 million, an increase of $250,000 from last year.

No Asian player has yet to win The Open in its long and illustrious history. The closest to do so was legendary Chinese Taipeiplayer Lu Liang-huan, also known as “Mr. Lu”, finishing solo second at Royal Birkdale in 1971, only one shot behind Lee Trevino. Mr. Lu would also go on to record a tied-fifth place finish three years later in 1974 at Royal Lytham & St. Annes.

The Japanese duo of Isao Aoki and Shigeki Maruyama are the only other Asian players with multiple top-10’s in the championship, with Aoki recording three (1978, 1979 and 1988) and Maruyama two (1997 and 2002). The best finish between them being Maruyama’s tied-fifth in 2002 at Muirfield.

PORTRUSH, NORTHERN IRELAND – OCTOBER 10: An aerial photograph from behind the green looking back to the tee on the par 3, 16th hole ‘Calamity Corner’ on the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club the host venue for the 2019 Open Championship on October 10, 2018 in Portrush, Northern Ireland. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)

The Course

Royal Portrush Golf Club (Dunluce Links Course), Portrush, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Par-71, 7,344 yards.

A classic and highly rated links-course originally designed by Harry Colt, Royal Portrush Golf Club was established in 1888 as The Country Club and assumed its current name in 1895 under the royal patronage of the Prince of Wales.

It has hosted The Open only once previously in 1951, with Englishman Max Faulkner lifting the Claret Jug and collecting a winner’s check of £300.

Other notable events held at Royal Portrush include The Senior Open Championship 1995-1999 and 2004, The Amateur Championship in 1960, 1993 and 2014, the Irish Open in 1930, 1937, 1947 and 2012, and the Arnold Palmer Cup in 2012.

A number of this week’s players would be familiar with the course from the 2012 Irish Open but also, in the case of Justin Thomas and Thomas Pieters, the 2012 Arnold Palmer Cup.

However, in order to accommodate an event the size of The Open, there have been changes made to the course. The original 17^th and 18^th holes have been taken out to make room for the spectator village, with two new holes built on land borrowed from the Valley Links course (the club’s other course) inserted on the front nine and playing as the seventh and eighth.

The famous par-three “Calamity Corner”, playing 230-yards and uphill, is now the 16^th, and the original 15^th and 16^th are now serving as closing holes. Perhaps determining the Champion Golfer of the Year on Sunday afternoon.

The Favorites

Rory McIlroy

Playing a Major on home soil for the first time, the Northern Irishman would definitely qualify as the local favorite this week, but there are more reasons than that why he might be considered the man to beat this week:

In 2019 he has posted 11 top-10 finishes in 13 events, including two wins at the Players Championship and the RBC Canadian Open. A great season by any standards and arguably the most consistently high-performing player this year. The only thing missing this year is a Major title.

He probably knows this course better than anyone in the field not named Graeme McDowell and holds the course-record of 61, posted in 2005 when he was 16-year-old.

For a player who once claimed his game was ill-suited for links-golf conditions, McIlroy’s average Open finish position since 2014 is an even 3.0, including a wire-to-wire win at Royal Liverpool in 2014.

Brooks Koepka

The world number one has had an incredible run in Majors since the 2016 PGA Championship, racking up four victories and two runners-up in his last 11 starts. He successfully defended the PGA Championship in May at Bethpage Black and was close to repeating the feat at the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in June when he finished second to Gary Woodland.

In the three Majors played so far in 2019, Koepka has finished tied-second at the Masters, first in the PGA Championship and second at the U.S. Open.

Although The Open has not been his best Major so far, he did finish tied-sixth at Royal Birkdale in 2017.

The Asian Tour Players

This year will see a big contingent of Asian Tour players in The Open, with a total of 16 members qualifying for Royal Portrush and representing seven different nations: Thailand (four), Japan (three), Korea (three), USA (two), South Africa (two), India (one) and Australia (one).

These players have a total of 22 previous appearances at The Open between them with eight cuts made, the best result among them was Yuta Ikeda’s tied-38^th place at Royal St. Georges in 2011.

Teeing it up on Thursday on the Dunluce Links will be (in OWGR ranking order):

PORTRUSH, NORTHERN IRELAND – JULY 15: Justin Harding of South Africa looks on during a practice round prior to the 148th Open Championship held on the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club on July 15, 2019 in Portrush, United Kingdom. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Justin Harding (RSA) OWGR Ranking: 50^th

The winner of five worldwide events since the start of the 2018 season, including the 2018 Bank BRI Indonesia Open and Royal Cup on the Asian Tour and the 2019 Qatar Masters on the European Tour, Harding is currently the highest ranked Asian Tour member on the OWGR at number 48.

Having already tasted Major Championship success at this year’s Masters where he finished tied-12^th and earned an invitation back next year, he will be hoping to improve on his lone appearance at The Open. A missed cut at Muirfield in 2013.

Harding is currently leading European Tour in Scrambling percentage with 67.0%, a skill that is sure to come in handy on this week’s difficult course.

Kiradech Aphibarnrat (THA) OWGR Ranking: 52^nd

The 2013 Asian Tour Order of Merit winner has played The Open on five occasions in the past, but the only time he has made it to the weekend was in 2018 when he finished in tied-75^th place.

Still a bit bothered by an injury he sustained at the Masters in April, Kiradech will be looking to return to the form he showed at the WGC-Mexico Championship in February where he finished tied-third, and the AT&T Byron Nelson in May where he posted a tied-fifth.

Ranked 69^th in the FedEx Cup on the PGA Tour he has comfortably retained his card in the U.S. with just over $1.5 million in earnings.

Kiradech does have the experience of being a Major championship contender. In the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills he was within striking distance of the leading quartet of Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson, Tony Finau and Daniel Berger after three rounds.

Teeing off on Sunday afternoon in tied-seventh place and only three shots behind the joint-leaders, a final round of three-over-par 73 meant he finished in 15th place for his best performance in a Major to date.

Jazz Janewattananond (THA) OWGR Ranking 53^rd

Leading the 2019 Asian Tour Order of Merit with $738,000 and two victories this season, Jazz has been playing superb golf since late last year.

Opening his season with a win at the SMBC Singapore Open, which as part of the Open Qualifying Series (OQS) qualified him for this week, he has followed it up with seven other top-five and another win at the recent Kolon Korea Open.

At this year’s PGA Championship Jazz was in tied-second place after three rounds. Although he slipped to a tied-14^th in the brutal conditions on Sunday, he would have gained invaluable experience from playing in the penultimate group on a Major Championship Sunday.

He is also the current leader of the Japan Tour (JGTO) Money Ranking and sits in 53^rd place on the OWGR, one spot shy of his career high.

Jazz’s only appearance at The Open came in 2018 at Carnoustie where he missed the halfway cut after rounds of 74 and 76.

Kurt Kitayama (USA) OWGR Ranking: 112^th

After a solid start to his rookie Asian Tour season, Kitayama broke through with a win at the European Tour co-sanctioned AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open in late 2018.

He followed it up with a victory in the Oman Open on the European Tour early this year and is currently in 19^th place on the Race to Dubai ranking and 112^th on the OWGR.

Known as one of the longest hitters on tour, Kitayama is leading the Driving Distance statistic on the Asian tour with an average of 319.25 yards off the tee.

This will be his first appearance in an Open Championship, his second Major following a tied-64^th place in this year’s PGA Championship.

Shaun Norris (RSA) OWGR Ranking: 123^rd

After making the cuts at the last two Opens Norris has shown that he can handle links golf conditions, and the South African is coming into this week in good form with a tied-fourth at the Japan PGA Championship two weeks ago.

Winning twice on the Asian Tour at the 2016 LeoPalace21 Myanmar Open and the 2015 Yeangder TPC, he has since then divided his time between Asia and Japan.

In 2018 he finished runner-up on the 2018 Japan Tour Money Ranking after winning the Heiwa PGM Championship, and is currently ranked 123^rd on the OWGR.

Yuta Ikeda (JPN) OWGR Ranking: 127^th

The most prolific Open participant among the Asian Tour players, with seven starts to his name and a tied-38^th as his best finish.

Twice a winner on the Asian Tour, the 2018 Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup and the 2017 Panasonic Open, Ikeda once reached as high as 33^rd on the OWGR but is currently ranked in 127^th place.

Having recently won the Gateway to The Open Mizuno Open on the Japan Tour in early June, Ikeda could be primed for a return to the top echelon of professional golf at Royal Portrush.

David Lipsky (USA) OWGR Ranking: 130^th

This will be the 2014 Asian Tour Order of Merit winner’s third Open Championship after playing previously in 2015 and 2017, with a tied-58^th as the best mark in his first attempt.

Lipsky has been playing solid golf since his win at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in late 2018, with a tied-10^th at the WGC-Mexico Championship and top-5’s at the Volvo China Open and Trophee Hassan II as his best results this year.

Currently ranked 10^th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and 130^th on the OWGR.

Sanghyun Park (KOR) OWGR Ranking: 141^st

Last year’s Asian Tour Rookie of the Year after winning the GS Caltex Maekyung Open and Shinhan Donghae Open in his home country, Park also made his Open debut at Carnoustie in 2018.

He has spent the last two weeks at the Irish and Scottish Opens to get acclimatized to links-golf and should be well prepared for the conditions this week.

Park has three top-5’s on the Asian and Japan Tours as his best finishes year-to-date and sits in 141^st place on the OWGR.

Jake McLeod (AUS) OWGR Ranking: 194^th

After winning the New South Wales Open late last year, McLeod followed it up with a third-place finish in the Emirates Australian Open the following week which qualified him for this year’s Open as part of the OQS.

This will be the 24-year-old Australians first Open and Major Championship, and he will be looking at this week as an opportunity to turn his season around after a rough stretch of events.

McLeod is after last week’s events ranked 194^th on the OWGR.

Mikumu Horikawa (JPN) OWGR Ranking: 195^th

Having recently won the JGT Championship Mori Building Cup Shishido Hills, he qualified for this week by being the leading money winner not otherwise exempt on the 2019 Japan Tour.

Horikawa will be playing in his first Open and second consecutive Major after making his Major Championship debut at last month’s U.S. Open.

Currently 195^th on the OWGR.

PORTRUSH, NORTHERN IRELAND – JULY 15: Shubhankar Sharma of India plays the first hole during a practice round prior to the 148th Open Championship held on the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club on July 15, 2019 in Portrush, United Kingdom. (Photo by Warren Little/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)

Shubhankar Sharma (IND) OWGR Ranking: 196^th

The reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit Champion and winner of the 2018 Maybank Championship and 2017 Joburg Open is not short of Major experience.

Having played in all four Majors in 2018, he will be trying to improve on his tied-51^st finish at Carnoustie last year and get his 2019 campaign back on the right track.

Sharma was last year ranked as high as 64^th on the OWGR, but after struggling a bit with his game in 2019 now sits in 196^th place.

Prom Meesawat (THA) OWGR Ranking: 273^rd

Making his first return to The Open since Royal St. George’s in 2011, Prom should be coming into this week confident after a top-10 in his last event, the Kolon Korea Open.

Having played consistently well in 2019, he has also posted top-10 finishes at the GS Caltex Maekyung Open and SMBC Singapore Open, plus a victory each on the Asian Development Tour and All Thailand Tour.

This solid play in 2019 has improved Prom’s OWGR ranking from 486^th at the end of 2018 to 273^rd as of this week.

Gunn Charoenkul (THA) OWGR Ranking: 278^th

Playing some very good golf this year after re-gaining his card at the Asian Tour Q-School last December, Gunn has recorded 11 top-10’s in 16 events across five different tours.

His equal best finish being a tied-third at the Gateway to The Open Mizuno Open, which qualified him for his first Open and Major championship.

Currently ranked 13^th on the Japan Tour Money Ranking after a string of good performances, Gunn has gained 361 positions on the OWGR in 2019 and currently sits in 278^th place.

Olle Nordberg looks ahead to The 148th Open — PORTRUSH, NORTHERN IRELAND – JULY 15: Gunn Charoenkul of Thailand plays a shot during a practice round prior to the 148th Open Championship held on the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush Golf Club on July 15, 2019 in Portrush, United Kingdom. (Photo by Jan Kruger/R&A/R&A via Getty Images)

Yosuke Asaji (JPN) OWGR Ranking: 327^th

This will be Asaji’s maiden Open appearance which he qualified for by winning the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup as a Monday qualifier.

The Asian Tour rookie sits in 4^th place on the Order of Merit and in 327^th place on this week’s OWGR.

Dongkyu Jang (KOR) OWGR Ranking: 333^rd

Last played in The Open at Royal Liverpool in 2014 and will be hoping to make it to the weekend this time around.

Qualified for the Championship by finishing tied-fourth at the Kolon Korea Open, his second top-10 on the Asian Tour in 2019 following a tied-sixth at the Asia-Pacific Diamond Cup.

Currently ranked 13^th on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and has comfortably retained his card for next year with over $100,000 in earnings. Ranked 333^rd currently on the OWGR.

Doyeob Mun (KOR) OWGR Ranking: 407^th

Early this year Mun got off to a fast start in his second Asian Tour season by posting a tied-fifth at the SMBC Singapore Open, earning a ticket to his first Open Championship in the process.

The 2018 Korean PGA Championship winner is currently ranked in 32^nd place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and 407^th on the OWGR.

Published on

With the year’s fourth and final Major set to tee off at Royal Portrush this week, the Asian Tour revisits some of the past glories by luminaries who had put Asia on the world golfing map at the world’s oldest Major.

No Asian player has yet won The Open in its long and illustrious history. Legendary Chinese Taipei player Lu Liang-huan, also known as “Mr. Lu” was the closest to have done so when he finished solo second at Royal Birkdale in 1971, only one shot behind winner Lee Trevino. Mr. Lu would also go on to record a tied-fifth place finish three years later at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in 1974.

In 1976, Norio Suzuki would finish tied-10^th at Royal Birkdale and although he won 16 tournaments on the Japan Tour in the 70’s and 80’s, this would be his best finish in a Major.

Big hitter Masahsi “Jumbo” Ozaki is a name that most golfers would be familiar with, and perhaps one of the game’s most storied players in the 80’s and 90’s.

Ranked inside the top-10 on the OWGR for nearly 200 weeks during that time, Ozaki won 94 events in Japan and the Japan Tour Money Ranking a record 12 times.

Ozaki’s best Open appearance was in 1979 when he finished tied-10^th at Royal Lytham & St. Annes, and he also posted a tied-sixth in the 1989 U.S. Open and a tied-eight in the 1973 Masters Tournament as his best Majors.

Masahiro “Massy” Kuramoto was also a famous player during the same time as Ozaki, recording 30 tournament wins on the Japan Tour.

He also had a great Open in 1982 at Royal Troon, finishing tied-fourth only two shots behind the winner Tom Watson.

Perhaps none on the Japanese stars had a better chance to win The Open than Tsuneyuki “Tommy” Nakajima at Royal St. George’s back in 1986.

Trailing the leader Greg Norman by four shots after two rounds and only one after three, Nakajima’s final round of seven-over-par 77 dropped him back into a tied-eight place at the end of the championship.

Except for Lu, the Japanese duo of Isao Aoki and Shigeki Maruyama are the only other Asian players with multiple top-10’s in the championship, with Aoki recording three (1978, 1979 and 1988) and Maruyama two (1997 and 2002).

Aoki’s best chance to win an Open Championship came in 1978 at The Old Course, when he held the lead through the first two rounds and was one shot back with 18 holes to play.

A final round of one-over-par 73 meant Aoki would finish in tied-seventh, four strokes behind the winner Jack Nicklaus.

In 2002 at Muirfield, Maruyama, known as “the smiling assassin”, also held the lead after the first two days.

A four-over-par 75 in the third round left him three behind the leader Ernie Els, and although he fired a 68 in the final round, it was one too many to join the four-man play-off. The tied-fifth finish would be the best Open in Maruyama’s career.

Japan’s Hideto Tanihara made a run for the Claret Jug at Royal Liverpool in 2006, with a third round of six-under-par 66 to sit three shots behind the leader Tiger Woods.

After a final round of 71 and an unstoppable Woods winning the event, Tanihara finished in a creditable tied-fifth place.

Korean players are on the leaderboards across all tours today, but it’s no secret that K.J. Choi is the one that paved the way among the men.

The winner of more than 20 events worldwide and eight on the PGA TOUR, including the 2011 Players Championship, he is Korea’s most successful male golfer in history.

At Carnoustie in 2007, Choi recorded his best finish in The Open by finishing tied-eighth, a position he has bettered in the other three Majors.

Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama has featured on the leaderboard during several recent Opens, but only once managed to clinch a top-10 after four rounds.

Having just turned professional in April of 2013, Matsuyama turned in his best Open performance to date by finishing tied-sixth at Muirfield, a month after also posting a top-10 in the U.S. Open in his rookie season.

China’s number one Haotong Li stormed home with a closing seven-under-par 63 at Royal Birkdale in 2017.

Starting the final round in tied-29^th place, shooting the low round of the day on Sunday meant Li finished in solo-third place six shots behind winner Jordan Spieth, and vaulted him into the top-100 on the OWGR for the first time in his career.

Ends.

Published on July 9, 2019

Sentosa, Singapore, July 9: There was no Asian Tour event last week but some of our members are still creating an impact in other events around the world and improving their standings on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).

The Asian Tour looks into their movement on the OWGR.

South African Shaun Norris had to battle his emotions during last week’s Japan PGA Championship, as his father passed away back home early Saturday morning. After being one shot behind the leaders after two rounds, Norris finished the event in a tie for fourth place after scores of 69 and 70 on the par-70 layout, after a marathon 36-hole Sunday due to rains washing out play on the first day.

Recording his best finish of the 2019 season, Norris moved up four places on the OWGR to 118^th which should give him a confidence boost ahead of his next event, The 148^th Open at Royal Portrush next week.

At the same event, Jazz Janewattanond was in a tie for eight place after 54-holes following a third round 63 early Sunday morning, and for a long time in the fourth round it looked like he would have a chance to post his fifth consecutive top-10 finish.

However, four dropped shots in his last five holes meant Jazz would finish in tied-26^thplace, missing a chance to earn important OWGR points and remains in 52^nd place on this week’s list.

Jazz now has one more event, The 148^th Open, to break into the top-50 on the OWGR for an invitation to the WGC-FedEx St Jude Invitational July 25-28th at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tennessee. He is taking this week off to rest and prepare for links golf at Royal Portrush.

Playing in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open, Gavin Green of Malaysia continued his solid play of the last two months with a tied-ninth finish after birdieing four out of his last five holes. It was also Green’s second top-10 in a row and third in his last four events, which lifted him to 206^th on the OWGR.

Justin Harding was also playing in Ireland last week after a few weeks off, and narrowly missed the cut by one shot after rounds of 72 and 68. The South African still gains one position on this week’s ranking list and moved to 48^th, two spots inside the cut-off mark for the WGC-FedEx St Jude.

Harding will be playing this week’s Rolex Series event, the Aberdeen Standard Investments Scottish Open followed by The Open at Royal Portrush.

Thailand’s Kiradech Aphibarnrat did not play last week and stays in 51^st place on the OWGR, one spot ahead of his countryman Jazz.

The next two events for Kiradech will be this week’s Scottish Open followed by The Open, and he will have a good chance to move back inside the top-50 if he plays well in these tournaments.

Ends.

Published on June 27, 2019

By Calvin Koh, Head of Press Operations and Media Partnerships

It’s always refreshing to talk to the next generation of talented golfers.

Unlike some of your mega superstars, often hidden behind security, agents and utter practised answers, they are often ready to offer you an uncensored account of their lives, goals and ambitions.

Australia’s Zach Murray is one of them.

The towering Aussie is part of a new generation of Tour rookies who are taking the Asian Tour by storm.

He signaled his arrival on the biggest stage by becoming the third fastest Qualifying School graduate to win on the Asian Tour with his victory at the New Zealand Open in March.

Not one to rest on his laurels, Murray ‘just wants to keep playing well and capitalise on that win.’

It’s an honest answer that speaks volume of his career ambitions.

“Obviously that win in New Zealand has changed my life and I’m trying to take it all in now,” said the Australian.

Not to be outdone in the tale of rookies, young Thai talent Sadom Kaewkanjana surpassed Murray’s earlier feat by becoming the record fastest Qualifying School graduate to win on the Asian Tour in his very first start at the Bangabandhu Cup Golf Open.

Just four months after coming through Asian Tour Qualifying School with a tied-13th result, the 20-year-old Thai claimed his maiden Tour victory in his very first start at the Bangabandhu Cup Golf Open.

He wears a smile all the time and his dedication to his craft makes him admirable.

He wants to ‘work even harder and get better all the time’.

The young Thai speaks with the innocence that comes with his age but competes with the confidence of a hardened Tour veteran.

It has been an unbelievable journey for Sadom, who has now made history by becoming the fastest Qualifying School graduate to win on the Asian Tour.

“Winning in my first start on the Asian Tour, I feel very happy. I will take a lot of positives from this week and this win will give me a lot of confidence in my game. It’s been an unbelievable journey since turning professional last December,” said Sadom after his win in Dhaka.

Despite his success, Sadom believes his best is yet to come as he sets his sights on fulfilling his full potential in the big leagues.

“My initial goal was just to keep my Asian Tour card for the next season but now I have won on both the Asian Development Tour and the Asian Tour.

“I am really happy, I didn’t expect to do so well and I will have to work harder to get even better after this,” said the Thai.

So watch this space as Murray and Sadom could well strike again very soon.

Ends.

Back to News Archive

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In our first installment of our ‘Where are they now?’ series, we track down one of Asia’s golfing legends and find out what he’s up to now after ruling the fairways for more than a decade .