Awesome amateur Sampson cooking up a real challenge at International Series Oman
Highly rated Chinese amateur Sampson Zheng is in a strong position going into round three of the International Series Oman today, and the renowned amateur chef is confident he has the right ingredients for success at Al Mouj Golf, here in Muscat.
Sampson, who regularly cooks for his University of California Berkeley team-mates, put together a sweet second round on Friday, and his three-under round of 69 took him to joint seventh on seven-under, four behind leader Mito Pereira from Chile, who plays on the LIV Golf League for Torque GC.
Starting on 10, he carded four birdies in his first eight, before dropping a shot on nine. On the front nine, he traded two birdies and two bogeys with an unfortunate three putt on the last. Despite the disappointing finish, he is optimistic, and believes more difficult conditions could be the secret sauce for a big push this weekend.
Sampson Zheng. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
Sampson said: “Talking to my caddie after the round, I was definitely happy with how I played. But I think there was much more out there, and that makes me exciting for the weekend. My front nine (the back nine) I was cruising. I had birdie putts inside 20 feet on every hole and I just missed a couple.
“The front nine was more of a struggle. I didn’t have many opportunities really. I had one tough break where my ball hit the sprinkler head and landed in the rough. But other than that I missed two greens all day so that was good. The bogey on the last was bittersweet, not the best aftertaste, but it will make me come back stronger.
Regarding his chances of progress over the next two rounds, Sampson is hoping that the wind picks up and Al Mouj bares its teeth. He said: “Typically I play well in tough conditions. The greens are firm here and it is quite windy, so if that picks up I think it will suit me.”
The International Series Oman got underway on Thursday 22 February, and runs until Sunday. It is the opening event on The International Series and the second event on the Asian Tour calendar.
The International Series is a set of elevated tournaments on the Asian Tour that provide an open pathway for golfers from all over the world onto the LIV Golf League.
Chilean star Mito Pereira birdied his final four holes to charge into the halfway lead at the US$2million International Series Oman today – his stunning finishing matching the spectacular, scenic coastline here at Al Mouj Golf, in Muscat.
He shot a bogey-free six-under-par 66 to lead on 11-under by one from Matt Wolff from the United States, who overpowered the course with his renowned big-hitting game from the tee to equal the course record with a stunning nine-under round of 63.
American Peter Uihlein shot a 66 to finish the day tied third with Australian Kevin Yuan, who carded a 68. They are both on nine under, in the first event of the year on The International Series and the second stop of the season on the Asian Tour.
Overnight leader David Puig from Spain, last week’s winner of Malaysia’s National Open – the Asian Tour’s season opener – surprisingly shot a 75 to slide back to four-under.
Matthew Wolff. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
“It was really nice. I played solid the whole day. Had a slow start, then at the end I made four birdies in a row,” said Pereira, who is attempting to win for the first time since the BMW Charity Pro-Am in 2021 on the Korn Ferry, although he was victorious four times last year on the LIV Golf League with Team Torque GC.
“I will approach the weekend the same, it’s been working the past two days so I will just keep trying to do that. Why change it? Try to hit every fairway and make some putts.”
Pereira, joint 11th here last year in the inaugural edition of the event, made just the one birdie on the front nine. A birdie on 10 was followed by a steady run of pars before his brilliant finish.
Wolff, who is on LIV Golf’s RangeGoats GC team, has been working hard to get his game back on track after a subdued few seasons. However, he finished fourth individually recently in LIV Golf Las Vegas and after today’s performance, he looks like being one of the favourites this weekend.
He said: “I had a blast. I drove it really nice which allowed everything else to be a little easier. I am taking golf a little less seriously. I am also working hard with my coach George Gankas, but more than anything just putting a good perspective on things. Knowing that golf is not the most important thing in the world. I know that all I can do is give it my best, and the rest is out of my control.”
He also did not drop a shot, made five birdies going out, and four coming back to resemble the golfer who made such a big impact on the game when he turned professional in 2019 and won on the PGA Tour.
Kevin Yuan. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
Yuan also impressed today and showed why he is one of the most exciting young prospects on the Asian Tour, and something of a specialist on The International Series.
Aged 26 and from Sydney, he birdied 17 and 18, which were two of his six birdies, and made two bogeys, both on the outward half.
He said: “I am really happy with the score and with how I played and my course management. I played pretty solid yesterday. Didn’t make many mistakes so happy with it overall.
“The golf course is awesome, the fairways are pure, the greens are rolling really nice, a 30-footer on the right line has a really good chance. It is just awesome to be out here.”
He ended fifth last week off the back of a breakthrough 2023 season when he finished joint second in the International Series Vietnam, and fifth in the International Series Thailand. Those results helped him into 32nd place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
“My game has not changed that much but the bits and pieces are starting to add up. It has really helped with my score, with my play. Hopefully I can keep this up,” he added.
Thailand’s Sarit Suwannarut (68) and Mexican Carlos Ortiz (69) are tied fifth on eight under.
For Sarit it was his fourth successive 68 after carding the same score as his first round, having shot 68 in the last two rounds last week, which helped him into 22nd place.
“I am pretty happy,” said Sarit, winner of last year’s Volvo China Open – an event on The International Series.
“I have been working with my coach and my team to be more consistent. It showed last week when I played consistently.
Sarit Suwannarut. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
“I am working on my mental side, how to behave on the golf course, focus shot by shot, focus on what I have to do, not the result or the outcome. I think it is working pretty good.”
Defending champion Takumi Kanaya from Japan added a 69 to his opening 70 and is well placed heading into the weekend on five under in a tie with a strong group that includes Zimbabwe’s Kieran Vincent (69) Lucas Herbert (69) from Australia, Chilean Joaquin Niemann (73), Korea’s Bio Kim (70) and Ervin Chang (71) from Malaysia.
The International Series Oman has given local and regional talent an incredible opportunity to learn from some of the best players in the world, with an elite-level field taking on the iconic Al Mouj Golf course this week.
The International Series is renowned for providing a pathway for golfers from all round the world onto the LIV Golf League. The set of 10 elevated events on the Asian Tour also offer a real platform for emerging local talent to gain valuable experience and develop, in each of the territories visited over the course of the season.
At the International Series Oman, local amateurs Azzan Al Rumhy and Ahmed Al Wahaibi were in the field this week alongside the Saudi quartet of Othman Almulla, Saud Al Sharif (main picture), Faisal Salhab and Khalid Walid Attieh.
Promising Dubai-based youngster Joshua Grenville-Wood also started with Jordanian-English Shergo Al Khurdi and the Moroccan duo of Ayoub Lguirati and Ayoub Id-Omar.
Ahmed Al Wahaibi of Oman, Othman Almulla of Saudi Arabia, and Azaan Al Rumhy of Oman pictured after a press conference on Wednesday, February 21, 2024 ahead of the International Series Oman. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
The home hopes and talented regional players had the chance to rub shoulders with the top names on the Asian Tour, and global golf superstars including Joaquin Niemann, who received a special invite to this year’s first Major, The Masters at Augusta National, just before the first round in Oman.
Other heavyweights in the field include major winners Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen, and LIV Golf League stars such as Fireballs GC youngster David Puig, the winner on the Asian Tour last week at the IRS Prima Malaysian Open.
Azzan, who also competed in the event last year, said: “I am delighted that we are hosting this interesting event in our home, Oman, I can’t be happier and prouder than this. This event had given me the chance to meet with local and international colleagues from the same field. I am looking forward to being involved in such events locally and internationally.
“Also, hosting the International Series in Oman is significant in elevating the golf reputation among Omanis.”
Al Wahaibi, who is making his debut this year, added: “These events are very important for Omani sport in general and golf in particular. The International Series shows how Oman can host world-class events, and also gives us the opportunity to practice and play with international golfers from around the world.”
Al Mulla, who has competed in all events on two seasons of The International Series, hopes the involvement of local and regional golfers can help raise the profile of the sport in Oman and further afield.
He said: “Golf is not a very common sport in the region. But International Series Oman, and other regional events on The International Series will help to raise the profile of the sport by bringing the very best in the world here. For golf fans and local players alike it is a wonderful opportunity.
“It is a chance for fans to watch the very best at the top of their game, and it is an opportunity for aspiring local players to learn from the very best, whether on the driving range or practice areas, or by playing alongside them.”
Kevin Yuan showed why he is one of the most exciting young prospects on the Asian Tour today, and something of an International Series specialist, when he took the clubhouse lead early on day two of the US$2 million International Series Oman – the first of this year’s International Series events on the Asian Tour.
The Australian carded a second-round four-under-par 68, for a two-round total of nine-under, and a one-stroke lead from Thailand’s Sarit Suwannarut, who returned the same score, and Mexican Carlos Ortiz, in with a 69.
Australian Travis Smyth and Chinese amateur Sampson Zheng, are a stroke further back after rounds of 68 and 69 respectively, here on a beautiful day at Al Mouj Golf, on the picture-perfect coast of Muscat.
Overnight leader David Puig from Spain, last week’s winner of Malaysia’s National Open – the Asian Tour’s season opener – surprisingly shot a 75 to slide back to four-under.
Sarit Suwannarut. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
Yuan, aged 26 and from Sydney, birdied 17 and 18, which were two of his six birdies and made two bogeys, both on the outward half.
He said: “I am really happy with the score and with how I played and my course management. I played pretty solid yesterday. Didn’t make many mistakes so happy with it overall.
“The golf course is awesome, the fairways are pure, the greens are rolling really nice, a 30-footer on the right line has a really good chance. It is just awesome to be out here.”
He ended fifth last week off the back of a breakthrough 2023 season when he finished joint second in the International Series Vietnam, and fifth in the International Series Thailand. Those results helped him into 32nd place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit.
“My game has not changed that much but the bits and pieces are starting to add up. It has really helped with my score, with my play. Hopefully I can keep this up,” he added.
Carlos Ortiz. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
For Sarit it was his fourth successive 68, having shot 68 on the last two rounds last week, which helped him into 22nd place, and yesterday.
“I am pretty happy,” said Sarit, winner of last year’s Volvo China Open – an International Series event.
“I have been working with my coach and my team to be more consistent. It showed last week when I played consistently.
“I am working on my mental side, how to behave on the golf course, focus shot by shot, focus on what I have to do, not the result or the outcome. I think it is working pretty good.”
Ortiz was paired with Sarit and it clearly helped both of them stay in the running.
He said: “Solid, nice playing with Sarit, nice when you are both playing well. It is beautiful here, just look at the weather and the look of the golf course, right by the ocean, I cannot say enough good things about it.
“I am getting my season started, playing good rounds, and that is what I am doing, I am enjoying it, and just keep doing it.”
Defending champion Takumi Kanaya from Japan added a 69 to his opening 70 and is perfectly placed heading into the weekend on five under in a tie with a strong group that includes Zimbabwe’s Kieran Vincent (69) Lucas Herbert (69) from Australia, Chilean Joaquin Niemann (73), Korea’s Bio Kim (70) and Ervin Chang (71) from Malaysia.
Half the field are still out on the course.
Well-travelled American golfer Manav Shah got off to a great start in his International Series debut in Muscat yesterday, with a sensational opening four birdies helping him to a five-under round of 67 to sit two shots off leader David Puig from Spain.
A graduate from UCLA in political science with experience on the PGA TOUR Latinoamérica and PGA TOUR Canada as well as the Korn Ferry Tour, Shah secured his Asian Tour card at Qualifying School in January, and had hit the ground running with a joint 22nd finish at the IRS Prima Malaysian Open at The Mines Resort and Golf Club in Kuala Lumpur last week.
Starting on 10, he birdied his first four before picking up another shot on the par-five 16th. Another birdie on three had Shah right up there alongside second-placed Joaquin Niemann, one off Puig, but a bogey on 17 brought him back to five under, in equal third alongside Mito Pereira, Carlos Ortiz and Kevin Yuan
Manav Shah passed through this year’s Asian Tour Qualifying School and has made a fine start to the season. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
The 31-year-old American of Indian descent from Mumbai, Shah felt the time was right for a crack at the Asian Tour. He said: “I have wanted to play in Asia for so long and it is really exciting. It feels right, I know a few of the guys here and the courses are great and the Asian Tour does a great job of setting up everything.
“There’s a lot of opportunity if you play well out here.
“A 67 felt good out there. I was a little anxious to get going, coming off a good week in Malaysia, and having to come Monday Tuesday Wednesday to prepare for a brand-new course is pretty tough. I caught the red eye Sunday, and played 18 on Monday, and I think I did a pretty good job of seeing the course and getting some rest in at the same time.
“The course is absolutely beautiful, it is my first time playing golf in the Middle East and Al Mouj Golf has certainly set a high bar.”
He tees-off in the morning session today at 8.35am local time.
The David Puig show goes on again uninterrupted as he took the first-round lead today in the US$2million International Series Oman at Al Mouj Golf, on Muscat’s stunning, sunny coastline.
On Sunday, the Spaniard won the IRS Prima Malaysian Open which was the season-opener on the Asian Tour and he now has the lead in the first International Series event of 2024 after shooting a seven-under-par 65, which matched the course record.
His playing partner and fellow LIV Golf player, Joaquin Niemann from Chile, carded a 66 to sit in solo second, while his close friend and compatriot Mito Pereira is next best placed with a 67, along with Mexico’s Carlos Ortiz, Australian Kevin Yuan and Manav Shah from the United States.
This marks Puig’s third successive bogey-free round in the low 60s – he fired back-to-back 62s to win in Malaysia for his second Tour title – and yet the 22-year-old Arizona-based golfer is taking it all in his stride.
Joaquin Niemann. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
“I think this is my form,” he said.
“I improved a lot off the tee and it’s showing now for sure, and my short game has usually been my strength. I feel the last two rounds last week and today’s round have actually been pretty average in terms of that’s where I want to be, but I can do better.
“Obviously, the scores are good. I have had three bogey-free rounds in a row. Which is crazy but I practice for that.”
He birdied four on the bounce from the fifth and made three other birdies.
He added: “We had a good game with Taichi (Kho) and Joaquin, obviously. We helped each other to keep playing better. So it was great fun and the dynamic was good. Joaquin started a little better than me with that eagle on three but I kind of bounced back. We were pretty far under par for seven, eight holes which obviously helps but it was great fun.”
Puig won the International Series Singapore last year for his maiden victory in the pro game and appears to be getting stronger and more confident week after week.
Niemann started today’s round having just learned he has been invited to play in The Masters in April, and that amazing news was clearly reflected in his performance.
He was also bogey-free and made an eagle, and four birdies.
He said: “It was a great day. I started off pretty good, with a birdie and then eagle on three. I kept hitting it well until the end of the round. I think my putter went a little bit off on the back nine but yes it was a good round but could have been better.
“It’s a good course, I like playing here. You have to hit different shots off the tee and to the green you must be a little bit creative with the wind, so it was fun, especially with David who was playing great. We had a good time, especially the way we were playing.”
Mito Pereira. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
Like Puig, the Torque GC captain has been one of the game’s in-form players. He shot a stunning 59 on his way to a thrilling play-off victory at the season-opening LIV Golf Mayakoba event in February, and triumphed in the Australian Open, also in extra-time back in December.
Niemann tied for fifth here last year, and Pereira, one of his Torque GC team-mates, also performed well, claiming joint 11th place. Both are clearly happy to be back on a course that was voted by the Asian Tour membership as the best course of the year, along with the Hong Kong Golf Club.
Said the 28-year-old Pereira, from Santiago: “Tee to green was pretty solid, I made some good putts and missed a couple, but was really solid overall. I didn’t make many mistakes, it was great to get it going today.
“I had some good second shots, a really good one on one, almost made it on two. I played here last year, the course is great, at the moment there is less wind than last year, but we’ll see.”
Last year he and Niemann triumphed on four occasions with Torque GC, although Pereira admits he has yet to get going this season after two LIV Golf events in Mayakoba and Las Vegas.
“I haven’t started the year too well so far, but I will try to do my best to improve and win this year,” he said.
“I love playing in these events. Every time I come here the events are growing. I’m really happy to be here. I will play a couple more this year.”
He started on the back nine, making the turn in one under but then put the pedal to the metal on the second half, making birdie on four out of the first five holes.
Defending champion Takumi Kanaya from Japan fired a 70 and is tied for 26th.
The name DiMarco will resonate with golf fans of a certain vintage after that epic Masters duel between Chris DiMarco and Tiger Woods in 2005 that ultimately went the way of the Tiger – after a first-hole play-off at Augusta National gave the golfing phenomenon a fourth Green Jacket.
For sports fans following the Asian Tour and The International Series, there is a real chance they could see more of the name again, with Chris’ son Cristian DiMarco making his debut at the International Series Oman which starts today.
The 28-year-old tees it up at Al Mouj Golf alongside the cream of the Asian Tour and a host of LIV Golf League stars, thanks to a tournament invite.
DiMarco, who has been playing on the Canada and Americas PGA Tours for the past four years, explained: “It is kind of a funny story, I was actually playing at Old Memorial in Tampa and Graeme McDowell was also playing. He is good buddies with my Dad, and we were chatting, and he asked what my plan was. I said I don’t actually know this year until summer, and he mentioned the Asian Tour and I was all ears!”
Chris DiMarco talks over his tee shot with his son and caddie Cristian at the Reno-Tahoe Open in 2013. Picture by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images.
So, is DiMarco hoping to follow in the footsteps of his compatriot Andy Ogletree, who graduated to the LIV Golf League, and a lucrative spot on Phil Mickelson’s HyFlyers GC, after winning The International Series Ranking last season?
He’s remaining philosophical.
“Yes and no,” he said. “Good golf takes care of itself. It is cool that if you play really good golf you can get on that tour. That’s awesome. That tour is sweet – a little more unorthodox than I grew up watching, but I still think it is great golf and the money is great. I’m over here as a one off and excited to see what is going on. I’m excited for the opportunity and see how far that takes me.
“If I go home with nothing that’s fine too, I’m just over here to play golf. I view it as a chance to play against great players, and I will always take that chance. The golf landscape has changed so much and got truly global. I don’t know what opportunities will arise, but I will take any I can.”
So, what does his father, Chris think about a stint on the other side of the world?
“For him, he just wants me to have that opportunity. He knows I’m close – whether that’s this week or a week down the road. Just keep signing up and playing where you can play and see what happens.”
It’s not just the name that will be of interest to golf enthusiasts. DiMarco is a rare breed; a leftie who putts with his natural right hand.
He explains: “When I could stand up and walk, Dad gave me a club that went both ways. For some reason, I always swung lefty. He tried to turn me around and go righty at one point but the left version was always better.
“For putting, I guess Dad always had putters lying around and so I just got used to it. I have never owned or used a left-hand putter, it’s the best part of my game.”
DiMarco senior, a three-time PGA Tour winner, could arguably have had much more success in the game. Prior to his narrow miss at Augusta in 2005, he had lost out at another play-off, this time to Vijay Singh, in the 2004 US PGA Championship at Whistling Straights.
A year after that Masters moment, he finished runner up in the 2006 Open at Royal Liverpool, losing out once again to an imperious Woods.
Cristian DiMarco during an official practice round at the International Series Oman. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
It’s no surprise how much of an inspiration he is to DiMarco junior.
“Watching him play I always wanted to do it, because you always want to do what your Dad does – it just so happened my Dad was playing in the Masters against Tiger Woods! But yes, that’s when I knew what I wanted to do, in 05 was when I began to really feel that and know what it was that I really wanted to do.”
He tees-off today at 1.05pm local time.
Japan’s Takumi Kanaya begins the defence of his International Series Oman title tomorrow at Al Mouj Golf in Muscat – aiming to do “exactly the same” as his breakthrough victory 12 months ago.
In what was a week of many firsts at the inaugural International Series Oman for the Japanese star he recorded a fine four-shot win, for his maiden professional victory overseas.
It also marked the first time that an International Series event had been won by a player from Japan, and surprisingly he became the first golfer from his country to win an Asian Tour event outside of Japan since Tetsuji Hiratsuka claimed the Black Mountain Masters in 2010.
The 25-year-old from Hiroshima, said: “In 2023, I lined up against some of the best players in the world and proved that I could win. This year I want to do exactly the same. Defending my title will not be easy against this strong field, but I know I have what it takes on a truly challenging course.”
Takumi Kanaya, defending champion, pictured during an official practice round on Tuesday. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
A veritable feast of phenomenal players are competing in what is the first of 10 International Series events this season, at what is the second stop of the year on the Asian Tour, following last week’s IRS Prima Malaysian Open.
Last week’s champion David Puig from Spain, and his compatriot Eugenio Chacarra, South Africans Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel, Chileans Joaquin Niemanna and Mito Pereira, plus India’s Anirban Lahiri are just a few of the glittering names from the LIV Golf League playing along with a plethora of Asian Tour stars like Filipino Miguel Tabuena, Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho and Jazz Janewattananond from Thailand.
Kanaya, world ranked 129, has been paired in one of the marquee groups along with two other standouts Denwit Boriboonsub from Thailand and Australian Lucas Herbert – who is making his debut on The International Series.
The stunning scenic coastline of Al Mouj Golf provided the perfect background for some brilliant front running golf by Kanaya last season.
“It is an honour to win the event, an International Series tournament,” said Kanaya at the time, after what was his first success since April of 2021 when he won the Token Homemate Cup, on the Japan Tour.
It was arguably the most important win of his career. He turned professional in 2020 after a glittering amateur career that saw him win the 2015 Japan Amateur, the Asia Pacific Amateur in 2018, and the team gold medal at the Asian Games that year. He also won the Mitsui Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters in 2019 as an amateur and was ranked the world’s number one amateur for 55 weeks. In 2020 he was victorious in the Dunlop Phoenix tournament.
Kanaya made a splash by winning last year. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
Last year was only his third start as a professional in an Asian Tour event, and it was his maiden appearance in an International Series tournament.
And it proved to be the catalyst for more silverware, as later in the year he triumphed twice in Japan, at the BMW Japan Golf Tour Championship Mori Building Cup and the Fujisankei Classic. He eventually finished the season third on the Japan rankings.
Since his success last year, still no Japanese player has won on the Asian Tour nor The International Series. Furthermore, no player has successfully defended an International Series event, so on a course that he loves and respects so much – and was voted by his peers on the Asian Tour as the joint-best course of the year – there is an excellent window of opportunity to make waves on the coast of Oman once more.
Kristoffer Broberg makes his eagerly awaited debut on both The International Series and the Asian Tour this week after securing his card at the start of the season, and the Q School graduate is relieved to be finally making things happen at the stunning Al Mouj Golf course in Oman after a minor delay to proceedings.
The Swede secured his card in January thanks to a sensational display at Springfield Royal Country Club in Hua Hin, Thailand, where three eagles on two, 12 and 18 helped him to a stunning victory and one of 35 cards on the Asian Tour for the season.
Family illness prevented the 35-year-old from making his debut last weekend at the IRS Prima Malaysian Open.
But he’s back and eager to take on a world-class field that features LIV Golf rising star David Puig, last week’s champion in Kuala Lumpur, and Joaquin Niemann, the Torque GC captain who fired an incredible 59 on his way to victory at the LIV Golf Mayakoba at the start of the season.
Kristoffer Broberg. Picture by Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
Other golfing heavyweights in the field this week include Major winners Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel, and Puig’s Spanish compatriot and Fireballs team-mate Eugenio Chacarra, a winner on The International Series at the St Andrews Bay Championship in Scotland last season.
Broberg is eager to get going after trading the long Swedish winter for some welcome Omani sun, despite having less than ideal preparation for his big debut.
The Swede, a winner at the BMW Masters in 2015 and the Dutch Open in 2021, explained: “I was supposed to play in Malaysia last weekend but my daughter got sick at Kindergarten, and I didn’t want to travel in case I was carrying the bug, so I waited at home.
“I have taken three days in Dubai trying to practice, but otherwise I have been indoors (in Sweden). I flew back the same night I won it, and I haven’t been outdoors since! But my game felt pretty good.
“I don’t have any expectations. I will take it one shot at a time – golf is golf and you never know. You can hit bad shots and make a long putt, and hit some great shots and miss the easy putt.”
While Broberg is philosophical about his own game, he’s under no illusions about the strength of the field assembling for the first event on The International Series, the Asian Tour-sanctioned pathway onto the LIV Golf League.
The winner of this season’s rankings on The International Series will earn a direct spot on the LIV Golf League roster, following in the footsteps of 2022 and 2023 champions Scott Vincent and Andy Ogletree, who earned lucrative, life-changing spots on Iron Heads GC and HyFlyers GC respectively.
That carrot has attracted the cream of the Asian Tour, with Gaganjeet Bhullar, Ben Campbell and Sarit Suwannarut, all champions on The International Series last season, all in the field vying for top spot on the 2024 rankings alongside reigning International Series Oman champion Takumi Kanaya.
Kristoffer Broberg. Picture by Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
Other Asian Tour favourites include Taichi Kho, Broberg’s fellow Q-School graduate John Catlin and Denwit Boriboonsub, a three-time winner at the end of last season. All three showed real promise last week in Malaysia.
Broberg said: “It’s great to see such a strong field – good for the Asian Tour to have all the best players compete. When you can play against top talent, you get to see where you stand on your level and it will be great to compete against those guys. I think it is amazing these guys have come to play.”
The Hong Kong Open, the celebrated tournament at the core of the Asian golf calendar for over six decades, will be played from November 21-24 this year – at the fabled Hong Kong Golf Club (HKGC), Fanling.
Offering lucrative prizemoney of US$2 million, the event will play a pivotal role in shaping the conclusion of the Asian Tour season.
For the second year in succession, it will also form part of The International Series – 10 elevated events that are integrated into the Asian Tour schedule providing a pathway to the LIV Golf League.
“This year marks the 63rd staging of the Hong Kong Open, and the Hong Kong Golf Club is excited to see it once again positioned as one of the season-ending tournaments, when there is so much to play for,” said Andy Kwok, Captain, HKGC – who are celebrating their 135th anniversary this year.
Cam Smith in action last year. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
“We are looking to build on last year’s successful tournament, boosting the event and the club’s stature in the game by welcoming back a wonderful selection of world-class golfers and fans from right across the Greater Bay Area and beyond.”
A world-class line up of players will return and will gradually be unveiled over the next few months, for a tournament that is one of only two events in the history of the game to be hosted at the same venue for over six decades – alongside The Masters Tournament at Augusta.
Said Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & CEO, Asian Tour: “At the end of last year we were delighted to announce our initial schedule for 2024, which featured the Hong Kong Open – being able to confirm the dates today allows us to take a step another closer to completing the jigsaw.
“The Hong Kong Open and the Hong Kong Golf Club are woven into the fabric of the Asian Tour, and so it is always key to our success to have all aspects of the event confirmed early on. The Club’s iconic course was voted by our members as the joint best course of the year last season, and I am sure more accolades await this year. We thank the Club, their captain Andy Kwok and Ian Gardner the General Manager, plus the Golf Association of Hong Kong China for their ongoing support and commitment.”
New Zealander Ben Campbell (main picture) raised the trophy last November after a gripping finish. He wrote his name into Hong Kong Open folklore with a gutsy victory, draining a 15-foot birdie putt on the final green to defeat playing partners Cam Smith from Australia and Thailand’s Phachara Khongwatmai. Campbell had not led at any stage of the tournament until that brilliant last putt.
The Asian Tour currently boasts 21 events visiting 13 countries with a significant number of important tournaments to be added.
Once finalised it is expected that the schedule will surpass last year– which saw 23 events staged with aggregate prize money of US$35 million.
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