September 19: Charles Porter did not sleep well before his second round, but that did not stop the American from opening a substantial four-shot lead at the halfway stage of the US$1 million Yeangder TPC as he wielded a hot putter for a seven-under-par 65 on Friday.

The 26-year-old from San Francisco closed with a solid birdie on the 18th hole, where he muscled a blind second shot from 255 yards to the par-five green and two-putted to reach 12-under-par 132. He had shot a 67 on Thursday, a day his late father would have celebrated his 75th birthday.

The six-foot-nine-inch-tall Porter towered on the field and was four better than Germany’s Dominic Foos and Japan’s Kazuki Higa. Both players shot identical rounds of 67, but the German’s included two bogeys in his last two holes that somewhat spoiled a brilliant round.

Thailand’s defending champion Suteepat Prateeptienchai, the overnight leader, made an eagle two on the par-4 third hole, but also shot four bogeys for a 71. He was tied fourth at seven-under alongside the 17-year-old local amateur Hsieh Cheng-wei (67), who holds the record of the youngest player to make the cut on the Asian Tour, Australia’s Travis Smyth (67) and Philippines’ Miguel Tabuena (69).

Charles Porter of the USA with his mother, Liz. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

Three Thai players – Chonlatit Chuenboonngam (68), Poom Saksansin (68) and Witchayapat Sinsrang (69) – and Australian Brett Rankin (68) were tied eighth at six-under. India’s Ajeetesh Sandhu shot the best round of the tournament so far – a 64 – to move to tied 12th place.

Porter, who lost his Korn Ferry Tour card last year before qualifying for the Asian Tour, said he did not expect the day to go so well. He started with a birdie, but it was his approach shot on the par-4 third hole, where he hit it to a foot from 125 yards, that put him in cruise mode.

“I would describe it as me being very patient and having super low expectations. I slept terribly last night, I didn’t eat breakfast, and I was like, ‘this is going to be a tough day’. Just because this course is tough and I didn’t feel great. But somehow, I made a bunch of putts and shot 65. Probably luck.

“I thought I managed well. When I was in the rough, I was playing defensively, which you have to do out here, and then when I got on the green, I just made a bunch of putts.”

Dominic Foos of Germany. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

Porter, who was in contention at Mandiri Indonesia Open last month but did not have a good weekend to finish tied 14th, said he had a plan to avoid a similar situation this week.

“I’m definitely going to try to get some rest and take my mind off golf. I did not do a good job of that in Indonesia, and I think I really struggled because of it. My mom’s here. I don’t know what we’re gonna do, but it’s not going to be related to golf,” Porter explained.

Foos, who concentrated on the HotelPlanner Tour in Europe last year, was happy to be back in Asia. He has already got a top-10 finish in the International Series Macau presented by Wynn, and is hoping to secure his card for next season during the Tour’s busy end to the 2025 schedule.

The two closing bogeys annoyed him, but Foos said: “I thought I was going to go bogey-free there for a second. That was kind of my goal all day. But things can get away from you quickly on this course, so overall, very happy. I kept the ball in play, hit a lot of fairways, hit a lot of greens, and then some putts dropped.”

Kazuki Higa of Japan. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

Higa, winner of last week’s 41st Shinhan Donghae Open in Korea, carried on his form to Taiwan, where his wife hails from. The tournament sponsors Yeangder also happen to be his personal sponsor. The Japanese star made two bogeys, but made up for those mistakes with three birdies in his last six holes.

“The grass is completely different from last week, so I feel that it’s going to be more difficult this week, but we’ve managed to set a good pace, a good tempo with the swing, and it has worked well so far. Some misreads on the greens, but in general, it was good,” said the winner of 10 international titles, including two of the Asian Development Tour in 2018 and 2019.

“It was a pretty windy morning today, but we managed to make some birdies in the beginning of the of the day.

“Because it’s my sponsor’s tournament, I tried to manage my season to get a good preparation for this week, but the win came last week. But it’s a tournament that I want to win very, very much. It’s one of the tournaments I want to win the most.”

Amateur Hsieh made seven birdies and was the best-place player from Chinese-Taipei and was delighted with his second cut in professional tournaments.

Hsieh Cheng-wei of Chinese Taipei gives a selfie to one of his fans. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour

“This is my home course, but I can’t say I have too much of an advantage over others,” said Hsieh. “I still struggle to read the greens and sometimes, I can’t gauge the wind properly as well.

“But I putted very well (27 putts) today, and made only one 3-putt. I had some good saves out there. Driver was a bit off, but I did well with course management.

“This is my second time making the cut. The last time I was too young. But now, I think I’m a better player. I hope I can continue to play my best in the next two rounds.”

September 19: Charles Porter put a bow around his fantastic round of seven-under-par 65 with a closing birdie on the 18th hole, and took a commanding four-shot lead in the clubhouse mid-way through the second round Friday in the US$1 million Yeangder TPC.

The 26-year-old from San Francisco, had shot a solid 67 in the opening round, on a day his late father would have turned 75. The 65 on Friday took him to 12-under par total of 132, four better than Germany’s Dominic Foos and Japan’s Kazuki Higa.

Both Foos and Higa shot identical rounds of 67, but the German’s included two bogeys in his last two holes that somewhat spoiled a brilliant round.

Thailand’s defending champion Suteepat Prateeptienchai, the overnight leader, made an eagle two on the par-4 third hole, but also shot four bogeys for a 71. He was tied fourth at seven-under alongside Australia’s Travis Smyth (67).

Porter, who lost his Korn Ferry Tour card last year before qualifying for the Asian Tour, said he did not expect the day to go so well. He started with a birdie, but it was his approach shot on the par-4 third hole, where he hit it to a foot from 125 yards, that put him in cruise mode.

Dominic Foos of Germany. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

“I would describe it as me being very patient and having super low expectations. I slept terribly last night, I didn’t eat breakfast, and I was like, ‘this is going to be a tough day’ Just because this course is tough and I didn’t feel great. But somehow, I made a bunch of putts and shot 65. Probably luck.

I thought I managed well. When I was in the rough, I was playing defensively, which you have to do out here, and then when I got on the green, I just made a bunch of putts.”

Porter, who was in contention at Mandiri Indonesia Open last month but did not have a good weekend to finish tied 14th, said he had a plan to avoid a similar situation this week.

“I’m definitely going to try to get some rest and take my mind off golf. I did not do a good job of that in Indonesia, and I think I really struggled because of it. My mom’s here. I don’t know what we’re gonna do, but it’s not going to be related to golf,” Porter explained.

Kazuki Higa of Japan. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Foos, who concentrated on the HotelPlanner Tour in Europe last year, was happy to be back in Asia. He has already got a top-10 finish in the International Series Macau presented by Wynn, and is hoping to secure his card for next season during the Tour’s busy end to the 2025 schedule.

The two closing bogeys annoyed him, but Foos said: “I thought I was going to go bogey-free there for a second. That was kind of my goal all day. But things can get away from you quickly on this course, so overall, very happy. I kept the ball in play, hit a lot of fairways, hit a lot of greens, and then some putts dropped.”

Higa, winner of last week’s 41st Shinhan Donghae Open in Korea, carried on his form to Taiwan, where his wife hails from. The tournament sponsors Yeangder also happen to be his personal sponsor. The Japanese star made two bogeys, but made up for those mistakes with three birdies in his last six holes.

“The grass is completely different from last week, so I feel that it’s going to be more difficult this week, but we’ve managed to set a good pace, a good tempo with the swing, and it has worked well so far. Some misreads on the greens, but in general, it was good,” said the winner of 10 international titles, including two of the Asian Development Tour in 2018 and 2019.

“It was a pretty windy morning today, but we managed to make some birdies in the beginning of the of the day.

“Because it’s my sponsor’s tournament, I tried to manage my season to get a good preparation for this week, but the win came last week. But it’s a tournament that I want to win very, very much. It’s one of the tournaments I want to win the most.”

September 18: In what is becoming a recurring theme at Asian Tour events in Chinese-Taipei, Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai once again climbed to the top of the leaderboard at the end of the opening round Thursday in the US$1 million Yeangder TPC.

The 32-year-old Suteepat is a four-time winner on the Asian Tour, with three of those on Chinese-Taipei soil. The tournament’s defending champion also came to the week high on confidence, having recently won the Mandiri Indonesia Open three weeks ago.

As was expected, Suteepat got off to a flying start, reaching four-under by his fourth hole with two birdies and an eagle, and was solid throughout despite treacherous scoring conditions as wind gusts reached 50kmph at Linkou International Golf and Country Club.

At six-under par 66, Suteepat is one ahead of the six-feet-nine-inches-tall American Charles Porter (67), who brightened up an emotional week for himself and his mother with a solid start. Porter’s father had passed away last year and would have turned 75 this week.

Suteepat Prateeptienchai of Thailand and Kazuki Higa of Japan.  Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Philippines’ Miguel Tabuena, who played in the morning session, posted a round of 68 for solo third place.

Another in-form star, Kazuki Higa of Japan, winner of last week’s 41st Shinhan Donghae Open, was among those tied for fourth place at 69. Bunched alongside Higa were the Chinese-Taipei duo of Chen Yi-tong, whose round included two eagles, and Wang Wei-hsuan; Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung, Germany’s Dominic Foos, and Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong and Witchayapat Sinsrang.

Local amateur Hsieh Cheng-wei, who holds the record of being the youngest player to make the cut in an Asian Tour event (14 years and 33 days) in the 2022 edition of the tournament, delighted the home fans with a 70 start.

Suteepat made just one bogey in the round – on the fifth hole – but added three more birdies before closing with a gutsy par when he chipped in from off the green on the par-5 18th hole for par after being in trouble with his third shot and leaving his chip short.

“I made an incredible start. Four-under after four. It was good, because the conditions are really tough and very different from last year. It was a case of hanging in there, making putts and hoping they would drop and not get angry,” said Suteepat, whose eagle came courtesy a 35-footer putt on the fourth hole.

“I have never played conditions like this in Taiwan before. I think I have confidence because I have done well here in the past. I am just thinking about the shot that I am hitting. We have three days more before the championship is decided, so I am not thinking of that already.”

Charles Porter of the USA. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

On his season so far and his aims for rest of the busy Asian Tour season coming up, Suteepat added: “I am pretty happy with the way I have played so far. My ambition now is to win an International Series event this year. That would be cool.”

Porter, who was in contention in the Mandiri Indonesia Open before a frustrating final day saw him slip to tied 14th place, was happy to have made just one bogey on a tough day.

“I got a lot going on this week,” said Porter, who lost his card on the Korn Ferry Tour last year. “Personally, my mom’s out here from San Francisco. It’s great to have her for more support. My dad would have turned 75 today. He passed away last year, so I kind of felt like he was out there with me.

“It was really tricky, especially with the wind. It was blowing all over the place for the first 15 holes we played. I just stayed super patient. Told myself, if I make bogeys, it’s okay. Just try not to make anything worse than a bogey. And I somehow made some birdies and hit some good putts.”

Hsieh Cheng-wei of Chinese Taipei. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Hsieh, 17, is playing only his fifth professional tournament, but showed once again that he can mix with the big boys. A bogey late in the round was his only blemish in a round that included three birdies.

Taking time out from his school studies this week, Hsieh said: “I was surprised to be the youngest player to make the cut on the Asian Tour a few years back. I thought it was a very good experience for me, but I never thought that was the only time I would make the cut here!

“I think I’ve become a better player now. With my current distances, I feel like I’m able to compete with the big boys. Last time, my technique wasn’t as good as the rest. I think I can compete out here. I just need to show it in the tournament.”

September 18: Philippines’ Miguel Tabuena withstood brutal wind gusts of up to 50kmph at Linkou International Golf and Country Club to post a four-under-par round of 68 and take the clubhouse lead after Thursday’s morning session of the US$1 million Yeangder TPC.

Tabuena, a house guest of his good friend Chan Shih-chang for the two back-to-back events in Taiwan, made six birdies in tough scoring conditions to pull ahead of a pack of five players at 69.

That group was led by the Chinese Taipei duo of Chen Yi-tong, whose round included two eagles, and Wang Wei-hsuan, Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung, and Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong and Witchayapat Sinsrang.

Local amateur Hsieh Cheng-wei, who holds the record of being the youngest player to make the cut in an Asian Tour event (14 years and 33 days) in the 2022 edition of the tournament, delighted the home crowd with a 70 start. Japan’s Takumi Murakami, Australia’s Brett Rankin, India’s Yuvraj Singh Sandhu and Thailand’s Poom Saksansin also finished on 70.

Chen Yi-tong of of Chinese Taipei. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Tabuena, seventh in the Asian Tour Order of Merit last year and 28th this season, is looking for his first win since the 2023 DGC Open in India. He has also finished as a runner-up in Taiwan on four occasions and is looking to go one step better this year.

“It was tricky. It wasn’t the easiest considering the winds were a bit gusty. It’s nice to post a score like that again after a long time. I know the game is there. I just haven’t been able to have the reps of tournament. And it’s nice that it’s coming along in time for what will be a very busy schedule,” said the three-time Asian Tour champ.

“I have been coming here since 2011, so I feel pretty familiar with these tough conditions in Taiwan. Probably, that is why I felt a bit comfortable out there. The greens are also a bit trickier this year, so it will be a case of whoever is the most patient at the end of the week. It won’t be an easy week, and you just have to grind it out.

“I’ve had a handful of second, third place finishes here, and I hope that is to my advantage. But the Asian Tour is getting stronger and stronger, and it’s always nice to have your best game against these players in this long stretch of events.”

Hsieh, Cheng-wei of Chinese Taipei. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Chen started his round from the 10th tee and finished it in some style.

One-over at the turn, he rolled in a 30-footer for eagle on the par-5 first hole to get into the red numbers and then closed with a holed second shot from 138 yards on the par-4 ninth.

Hsieh, 17, is playing only his fifth professional tournament, but showed once again that he can mix with the big boys. A bogey late in the round was his only blemish in a round that included three birdies.

Taking time out from his school studies this week, Hsieh said: “I was surprised to be the youngest player to make the cut on the Asian Tour a few years back. I thought it was a very good experience for me, but I did not think that was the only time I would make the cut here!

“I think I’ve become a better player now. With my current distances, I feel like I’m able to compete with the big boys. Last time, my technique wasn’t as good as the rest. I think I can compete out here. I just need to show it in the tournament.”

After a poor start to the season, Suteepat Prateeptienchai [main picture] was back to his best at the end of last month – claiming the Mandiri Indonesia Open.

It was a timely return to form ahead of the Thai star’s trip back to his very own promised land this week: Chinese-Taipei.

Suteepat is the defending champion at the Yeangder TPC, which starts Thursday at Linkou International Golf & Country Club, New Taipei City, and all eyes are on a player who has a special affinity to the island state like no other.

Victory last year was one of two in the country as he claimed the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open a few months after. He also won the Taifong event a year earlier and was runner-up the year before.

His love affair with Chinese-Taipei, which has such a strong golfing tradition, is well known, and he has also enjoyed success on the local circuit there.

“I know I have chance when we play in Taiwan,” said the 32-year-old.

Suteepat Prateeptienchai (right).

However, that was probably not what he was thinking after he missed five out of the first six cuts this season.

A change in equipment, just before his victory in Indonesia, was key to getting back on track.

“I changed my equipment sponsor and just changed my irons before Indonesia, like a month ago. But now I’m just more confident with the new irons, wedges and ball and everything, so I feel better now,” he explained.

“I am not back to playing as well as last year, but I am playing much better than the first half of this year. I got some confidence in Indonesia after I won it. Last week I would say was not too good, but I still made the cut. So, I think I have chance to defend my title this week.”

His success in Indonesia was his fourth on the Asian Tour but first outside of Chinese-Taipei. Having a lot of friends here has been a big factor in his success he says, while he also always feels he has a head start.

“I have played Linkou quite a few times when I’m in Taiwan, so yeah, I think that gives me an advantage compared to other foreigners,” said Suteepat.

He revealed a healthy diet has also played an important part in his success – all thanks to his girlfriend.

Suteepat Prateeptienchai. 

He said: “My girlfriend studies sports nutrition and helps me with my diet. It’s important this time of year when there are so many events and you need energy. I eat bread and nuts when I play. It makes me make feel like I have more power on the course all day.”

Suteepat is now in 15^th place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit and with 10 more events to go this year – including another title defence at the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open – he has an outside chance to win the Merit title.

He says: “I haven’t really thought about that, because I wasn’t playing very well earlier this year. I’ll just play the best for me this year. We’ll see more next year. I have a lot of plans to improve my fitness and everything.”

He has been paired in the first two rounds with Chinese-Taipei’s Lee Chieh-po, fresh from his first season playing the LIV Golf League, and Kazuki Higa from Japan – winner of last week’s Shinhan Donghae Open, in Korea.

Pictures by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.

Lee Chieh-po competes in the Yeangder TPC this week on home soil, saying he is a much stronger player after playing on the LIV Golf League this season.

He’s the first player from Chinese-Taipei to play on the multi-million dollar franchise and despite not performing well enough to keep his playing privileges for next year the experience has clearly been priceless.

“It’s been a very good challenge for me,” said the 30-year-old, “playing alongside many top players in the world at so many great courses over the season. I would say it has helped honed my skills, both technically and mentally.”

He finished in 47^th place on the LIV Rankings – excelling in Hong Kong and Chicago, tying for 12^th and 13^th respectively.

“I think I’m a better player now. I loved the challenge to be honest. After this season, I think I’ve grown a lot for sure. I hope I can do better next year.”

Lee Chieh-po. Picture by Graham Uden/ Asian Tour.

After a globetrotting 2025 playing LIV, this week marks his first appearance on the Asian Tour this season.

“At the start of the LIV season, I was trying my best to get used to the different conditions we play as the golf courses are very different from what we play in Asia. The pin positions are tough too,” he said.

“I came back to Taiwan to make some changes to my clubs, just to tackle the fast greens and to create more spin which will allow me to attack the pins better.

“After every two events, I’ll do a reflection on my performance and make some adjustments accordingly. I think I’ve improved a lot over the last six months. Most of the golf courses on LIV are difficult for me. But I got used to it eventually and managed to find some momentum towards the end which was good.”

Lee won this week’s event back in 2021 during the global pandemic when it was played as a domestic tournament.

He explained: “I specifically picked this week for my comeback on Tour as this is a special event to me, playing at a venue where I’m very familiar. I look forward to playing this week, as well as the remainder of the season, with the new techniques I’ve learnt.

“My game is feeling great right now. After LIV season ended, I took three weeks off to do some physical training to prepare myself for the remainder of the Asian Tour this year.”

He won twice last year, first the International Series Thailand for his maiden title on the Asian Tour and then the LIV Golf Promotions event at the end of season – which earned him a place on the League.

This week we will see just how far his game has progressed and if he can add more trophies to a cabinet that will no doubt be filled with silverware over the coming seasons.

When Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai proclaims his love for Taiwan, it comes straight from the heart and is backed by results. Story from the 2024 Yearbook.

The 31-year-old produced a masterclass of frontrunning at the Linkou International Golf and Country Club and secured a two-shot, wire-to-wire win at the Yeangder TPC.

It was his second Asian Tour win on the island in less than a year, as 10 months earlier he had claimed the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open – some 180 kilometres south, in dominating fashion by four shots.

Remarkably, a few months after winning the Yeangder event he would return to successfully defend his Taiwan Glass Taifong Open crown, completing a rare hat-trick of titles in the same country.

However, the Yeangder TPC was by far the biggest win for the Thai star. This time, apart from the omnipresent Taiwanese wind, he also had to battle John Catlin – the in-form American leading the Asian Tour Order of Merit with two early wins in the season.

Suteepat Prateeptienchai. Picture by Vachira Kalong/Asian Tour.

Catlin promised to spoil Suteepat’s party with five successive birdies in his first five holes – and six in his first seven holes – on Sunday.

In that stretch of seven holes, Suteepat made just one birdie – on the par-four third hole – but that was enough to keep his nose ahead of the charging Catlin, who had started the final round six shots behind the leader.

Miguel Tabuena, at 16-under, was his closest rival after the first three rounds, and even though the Filipino made three birdies in his first 11 holes, Suteepat maintained the two-shot advantage with three birdies of his own at that stage.

Tabuena’s (70) challenge fizzled out with bogeys on the 11th and 14th holes. Catlin (65) could only find a couple of birdies and a bogey after the hot start, which just eased the pressure on Suteepat (69), who could afford to make two bogeys coming in. He did close with a birdie on the par-five 18th hole, where he almost chipped in for an eagle for a grandstand finish.

Suteepat, who also plays on the local tour in Taiwan and had three top-10s in four starts during their season, said: “I love Taiwan! I have a lot of friends who have graduated from the Asian Development Tour to the Asian Tour. I am comfortable here and it is great fun.

“It was tough today, because of the wind and good players following me. I saw Catlin’s score and then got nervous. Got into trouble on the 15th, where I went over the green and then found a greenside bunker on the 16th. But I kept thinking I was still the leader, and I must hold on.

“This means a lot… an exemption for two years is amazing!”

The weather over the weekend was tough with wind and rain, and Catlin, who recorded his first win on the Asian Tour in April 2017 at the same tournament, felt he handled the conditions well.

“I just kept having fun and enjoying playing golf. It was windy, it was difficult, it was rainy… I think we pretty much saw every possible weather out there. I handled it pretty well. I guess my years in Europe paid off,” said Catlin, who opened up a huge lead of 1,146.83 points on the Merit list with the finish.

“I hit the ball much better today than I did on Saturday and that gave me a lot more chances. I was able to convert a couple of them and I hit a couple stone dead, which always helps.”

The 29-year-old Tabuena, who was looking for his fourth win on the Asian Tour, revealed he played the tournament with pain in his left thumb.

The in-form golfer, who came into the tournament with three top 10s in his last five starts, said: “It was good, but I was fighting a bit of pain on my left thumb again. It started on Wednesday, so I was just trying to take care of it.

“Golf is a funny sport and if you don’t focus on your actual game, you can do great things sometimes. I am happy with the way I played.”

Chinese Taipei’s Lee Chieh-po (67) was the best finisher from the home country with a solo fourth.

Korea’s latest star Yubin Jang, who was handpicked by Iron Heads GC captain Kevin Na to join his LIV Golf League team later in the year and has three wins in his home country, showed a glimpse of his massive talent when he aced the par-three eighth with an eight iron from 185 yards on Saturday.

The 22-year-old Jang eventually finished tied 20th after a disappointing double bogey on the last on Sunday.