Kobe, Japan, September 24: In-form Rahil Gangjee of India is hopeful of putting up a strong title defence when the 10^th edition of the Panasonic OPEN Golf Championship gets underway at the prestigious Higashi Hirono Golf Club on Thursday.

Gangjee sensationally ended a 14-year title drought when he claimed his second Asian Tour title at the tournament last year. The 40-year-old plans to dominate the field again, albeit on a different course, when he tees off for the ¥150,000,000 (approx. US$1,338,067) event.

Gangjee will spearhead the 132-man field alongside Jazz Janewattananond of Thailand, Australian Scott Hend, Yosuke Asaji of Japan and Korea’s Taehee Lee, who are the leading four players on the current Asian Tour Order of Merit.

More than 50 Asian Tour winners will feature in the talented field and they include Zach Murray of Australia and Rory Hie, who became the first Indonesian player to win on the Asian Tour when he triumphed in India two weeks ago.

The Panasonic OPEN Golf Championship is the fourth event to be sanctioned by both the Asian Tour and Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO) this season. The tournament is also returning to the Higashi Hirono Golf Club this week following a seven-year lapse.

The race to finish inside top three on the Panasonic Swing series will also heat up this week with the Panasonic OPEN Golf Championship being the concluding leg of the 2018/19 edition.

The Panasonic Swing is based on an aggregate point ranking earned by players at the following five tournaments – 2018 Thailand Open, 2018 Panasonic Open India, 2018 Indonesian Masters, 2019 Maybank Championship (Malaysia) and 2019 Panasonic Open Golf Championship (Japan).

The top-three finishers upon the conclusion of the 2019 Panasonic OPEN Golf Championship will share a bonus pool of US$150,000 where they will earn US$70,000, US$50,000 and US$30,000 respectively via the reward scheme.

Thailand’s Poom Saksansin leads the current rankings with 2,919 points while countrymen Panuphol Pittayarat lurks in second and Jazz in third.

Did you know?

• Rahil Gangjee ended a 14-year title drought when he won his second Asian Tour title at the 2018 Panasonic OPEN Golf Championship last year.
• He became only the second foreigner, following Australian Brendan Jones in 2010, to win the prestigious event.
• Gangjee finished second on the 2017/18 Panasonic Swing, thanks to his victory at the Panasonic OPEN Golf Championship last year.
• Gangjee first won on the Asian Tour in 2004 in China where he beat a top field that included Europe’s Ryder Cup heroes Phillip Price, Ian Woosnam and Nick Faldo.
• He had several close finishes since then, most notably at the 2014 Panasonic Open India in 2014 when he lost in a play-off to S.S.P. Chawrasia.
• Gangjee enters the week in good form, having secured his first top-10 finish on the Japan Golf Tour two weeks ago and a top-20 finish in Korea last week, which is his best result on the Asian Tour so far this season.
• Jazz Janewattananond is the only player to have won more than once on the Asian Tour so far this season. He claimed his third title at the season-opening Singapore Open in January and secured his fourth victory at the Kolon Korea Open in June.
• At the age of 23 years 6 months and 27 days, Jazz becomes the youngest ever player to achieve four wins on Tour. India’s Gaganjeet Bhullar held the record previously after he won his fourth title in 2012 at the age of 24.
• Jazz is the highest-ranked player in the talented 132-man field this week. He leads the current Asian Tour Order of Merit and is ranked 60th on the latest Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).
• Apart from the two victories, Jazz has also notched five top-10 finishes on the Asian Tour this season.
• Jazz also enjoyed a tied-14th place finish at the PGA Championship in June which was the best-ever result achieved by a Thai player at the PGA Championship.
• Rory Hie became the first Indonesian winner on the Asian Tour when he won wire-to-wire in India two weeks ago.
• After earning First Team All American golf honors at Cerritos High in California, Hie played college golf as a freshman and sophomore at University of Southern California 2006-2008 before turning pro in 2009. Hie was ranked as high as sixth as an amateur before he turned professional. 
• Prior to his breakthrough, Hie’s best finish in 2019 had been a tied-fifth at the OB Golf Invitational on the Asian Development Tour (ADT). He was poised for a top-10 finish at the Bank BRI Indonesia Open last month being tied-fourth after 54 holes, but a final round 74 dropped Hie to tied-22nd. 
• Hie made his debut at the Panasonic OPEN Golf Championship in 2012, when the tournament was last held at the Higashi Hirono Golf Club.
• Zach Murray secured his 2019 Asian Tour card at the Qualifying School last December after finishing fourth in the 90-hole event.
• The 22-year-old Australian, who hails from Victoria, won his first professional victory at the New Zealand Open earlier in March. It was only his third start on the Asian Tour.
• Murray led from start to finish when he won the Nexus Risk TSA Group WA Open (an event on the PGA Tour of Australasia) as an amateur golfer in October 2018. One month later, he made his professional debut at the Australian Open.
• Prior to joining the play-for-pay ranks, Murray was ranked as high as 19th on the World Amateur Golf Ranking.

Sentosa, Singapore, September 23: Pressure does not care about form and can be very cruel.

Zimbabwean Scott Vincent had the chance to seal his maiden win on the Asian Tour after going into the final round of The 35^th Shinhan Donghae Open with a two-shot cushion.

It may seem advantageous but the margin for error has also shrunk with the possibility of drama that lies ahead when the first tee shot is hit.

And it did for Vincent, who bogeyed his first hole before a mixture of two more bogeys and three birdies denied his day of glory on a Sunday again.

“It was just tough, not a lot went my way and I didn’t play very well. You know, I left a few shots out there as well but when you look at the overall picture, I would have had to at least shoot four under today to match that score which is going to be tough any day out here,” said Vincent.

A victory would mean the world to Vincent but having seen victory slipped by his grasp on numerous occasions, the Zimbabwean knows he will make peace with pressure and win one day.

“I still haven’t finished outside of the top-three, so still not bad. I learned a lot and got a lot to work on but heading in the right direction. I put myself in contention to win a tournament, that’s important for me.

“You know this has been a big tournament for me in my career, where it’s kind of boosted the rest of the year, so I’m hoping that this is going to do the same and carry me forward in these next few events,” said the Zimbabwean.

With his third place finish, Vincent moved up to sixth place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, while South Africa’s Jbe Kruger, who won again for the first time since 2012, made a huge leap up to ninth place from the previous week’s 95^th position on the money list.

Thailand’s Jazz Janewattanond continues to hold prime spot atop the Order of Merit despite ending his week in Korea in tied-32^nd place while Australia’s Scott Hend, who did not feature at The 35^th Shinhan Donghae Open, remains in second place.

The Asian Tour heads to Japan for the Panasonic Open Golf Championship which will take place at the Higashi Hirono Golf Club from September 26-29.

Ends.

Top-20 players on the Habitat for Humanity Standings

Pos       Player   Order of Merit (US$)

1            Jazz JANEWATTANANOND (THA) $769,297.49

2            Scott HEND (AUS) $528,160.94

3            Yosuke ASAJI (JPN) $296,523.73

4            Taehee LEE (KOR) $284,661.95

5            Masahiro KAWAMURA (JPN) $260,100.96

6            Scott VINCENT (ZIM) $234,723.16

7            Zach MURRAY (AUS) $221,011.92

8            Jbe KRUGER (RSA) $210,624.31

9            Micah Lauren SHIN (USA) $187,218.98

10          Johannes VEERMAN (USA) $177,288.30

11          Yikeun CHANG (KOR)  $170,703.36

12          Sanghyun PARK (KOR) $140,473.49

13          David LIPSKY (USA) $137,309.79

14          Prom MEESAWAT (THA) $123,386.86

15          Sadom KAEWKANJANA (THA) $118,336.53

16          Janne KASKE (FIN) $114,708.67

17          Berry HENSON (USA) $106,792.21

18          Dongkyu JANG (KOR) $104,405.57

19          Richard T. LEE (CAN) $98,972.88

20          Panuphol PITTAYARAT (THA) $98,850.98

Incheon, Korea, September 22: South Africa’s Jbe Kruger ended his seven-year title drought on the Asian Tour by signing off with a six-under-par 65 to win The 35^th Shinhan Donghae Open by two shots on Sunday.

Kruger has not won another Asian Tour title since his lone win in India in 2012. However, he showed he was ready to make his comeback to the winner’s circle with a commanding performance where he did not drop a single shot in his last 37 holes at the Bear’s Best Cheongna Golf Club.

Trailing overnight leader Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe by two shots, the South African made his move quickly with a birdie on the second hole, followed by another pair of birdies on holes seven and eight.

After making another birdie on 11, Kruger knew he would have a chance of winning and charged ahead with three straight pars before pulling ahead with another set of birdies on 15 and 16 to eventually close with a winning total of 15-under-par 269.

Korean-American Chan Kim matched Kruger’s final round efforts with another 65 of his own to finish in outright second place while Vincent could not hold on to his overnight lead, slipping to third place after posting a 71 at The 35^th Shinhan Donghae Open which is being tri-sanctioned by the Asian Tour, Korean PGA and Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO).

Ends.

Did you know?

• With this win Jbe Kruger secures a two-year exemption on the Asian Tour after being ranked 95th on the Order of Merit the previous week.
• The South African did not make a bogey in his last 37 holes of the tournament, going back to the 17th hole on Friday.
• He had a Driving Distance average of 286 yards, Driving accuracy of 67.86%, Greens in Regulation (GIR) of 76.39 and Putts per GIR of 1.69.
• Kruger last won on the Asian Tour in the 2012 Avantha Masters in India, a tournament that was co-sanctioned by the European Tour.
• Hailing from Northern Cape province in South Africa, he has also recorded four career wins on the Sunshine Tour. The latest title coming at the Sun Carnival City Challenge in 2017.
• The 33-year-old got his nickname Jbe from the initials in his full name, James Barry Kruger.
• He currently holds the record for most Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) tournaments played in a 12 month period: 41.
• Chan Kim is a former member of the Asian Tour. He topped the Asian Tour Qualifying School in 2013.
• He finished third on the JGTO money list in 2017, thanks to three wins.
• Kim came in second at the Gateway to The Open Mizuno Open on the Japan Golf Tour in July where he earned his spot to The Open.
• He is currently leading the driving distance stats category (320.34) on the JGTO.
• Scott Vincent, the only Zimbabwean member on Tour, has never finished outside the top-three in his last four outings at the Shinhan Donghae Open.
• He finished tied-second in 2016, tied-third in 2017, second last year and third this week.
• Vincent claimed his first international win at the Landic Challenge 7 held on the Japan Challenge Tour in June.
• He has not missed a single cut in eight starts so far this season.
• Vincent was crowned the Asian Tour Rookie of the Year in 2016 after ending his season in 28th place on the Order of Merit.

Jbe Kruger (Rsa) Fourth round 65 (-6) Total 269 (-15)

It all changed on the seventh hole when I made my second birdie and I could feel the momentum then. It was in the Lord’s plan whether I would win again today. But as for me, I started to feel good and after the 11th hole, I had a good feeling it was my time again. I would say what went right today was probably my putting. I obviously didn’t hit it as well as I could have but my chipping and my putting saved me multiple times and that’s why I didn’t make bogeys. I’m a professional and this is what I do for a living, so I will probably go where the money is, go there and play well. I have been a big fan of playing in Japan, but you can’t really get into that Tour if you haven’t gone to Q school. But now, things have changed. This course is a Jack Nicklaus design golf course. It’s the same as my own course, so the first time I came here, it literally looks identical. It has the same lines, the same kind of grass. Everything is exactly the same and it almost feels like a home away from home. So, you know I’ve heard someone say “horses for courses” and that’s the truth, because you generally play well at the same courses all year long.

Chan Kim (Usa) Fourth round 65 (-6) Total 271 (-13)

Yeah I played really solid and gave a good fight today. Obviously, you know, we were expecting some bad weather but it held up pretty well. It was pretty windy but it was definitely scorable conditions. It’s quite a bitter pill to swallow after finishing so close. I finished second and third quite a bit this year, so I’m just still waiting for that first win of the season.

Scott Vincent (Zim) Fourth round 71 (Even) Total 273 (-11)

It was just tough, not a lot went my way and I didn’t play very well. You know, I left a few shots out there as well but when you look at the overall picture, I would have had to at least shoot four under today to match that score which is going to be tough any day out here. So, the way Jbe played it was going to be tough to beat either way. But obviously with my position going in, I would have liked to have a slightly different result. But hey, I still haven’t finished outside of the top-three, so still not bad. I learned a lot and got a lot to work on, but heading in the right direction. I put myself in contention to win a tournament, that’s important for me. You know this has been a big tournament for me in my career, where it’s kind of boosted the rest of the year, so I’m hoping that this is going to do the same and carry me forward in these next few events.

Incheon, Korea, September 21: Zimbabwe’s Scott Vincent continued to hold on to his lead after signing for a third round three-under-par 68 as Typhoon Tapah threatens to affect the final round of the 35^th Shinhan Donghae Open.

The centre of the typhoon will be approximately 300km away from the Bear’s Best Cheongna Golf Club on Sunday and in the event the final round cannot be completed, regardless of the number of holes completed, the tournament will be declared as a 54-hole tournament.

Depending on the weather situation on the final round, Vincent stands on the verge of lifting his maiden Asian Tour title, having come so close to winning on several occasions since he made his debut on the Tour.

The Zimbabwean’s three-day total of 11-under-par 202 was enough to give him a two-shot advantage over Korea’s Sung Kang, South Africa’s Jbe Kruger and Japan’s Shugo Imahira who returned with matching 204 total to share second place.

Vincent has never finished outside the top-three in his last three outings at the Bear’s Best Cheongna Golf Club and despite stumbling early with a bogey on the second hole, he demonstrated his resolve by bouncing back with a pair of birdies on the sixth and seventh holes.

He dropped another shot again on the par-four 10^th but recovered quickly again with birdies on 11 and 13 before a closing birdie on 18 allowed him to pull ahead from the chasing pack with a two-shot cushion at The 35^th Shinhan Donghae Open which is being tri-sanctioned by the Asian Tour, Korean PGA and Japan Golf Tour Organisation (JGTO).

Ends.

Did you know?

• Scott Vincent, the only Zimbabwean member on Tour, has never finished outside the top-three in his last three outings at the Shinhan Donghae Open.
• He finished tied-second in 2016, tied-third in 2017 and second last year.
• Vincent claimed his first international win at the Landic Challenge 7 held on the Japan Challenge Tour in June.
• He notched four top-10s in Australia, Japan, Korea and Malaysia to sit in ninth place on the latest Asian Tour Order of Merit. He has not missed a single cut in eight starts so far this season.
• Vincent was crowned the Asian Tour Rookie of the Year in 2016 after ending his season in 28th place on the Order of Merit.
• Jbe Kruger has won once on the Asian Tour in the 2012 Avantha Masters in India, a tournament that was co-sanctioned by the European Tour.
• Hailing from Northern Cape province in South Africa, he has also recorded four career wins on the Sunshine Tour. The latest title coming at the Sun Carnival City Challenge in 2017.
• The 33-year-old got his nickname Jbe from the initials in his full name, James Barry Kruger.
• Sunghoon Kang has previously won one title on the Asian Tour, the 2013 CJ Invitational Hosted by KJ Choi.
• The 32-year-old Korean also has victories in two other events. The Kolon Korean Open the week following his win at CJ Invitational, and most notably the 2019 AT&T Byron Nelson on the PGA Tour.
• This year, Kang finished seventh in the PGA Championship at Bethpage Black, his best finish in a Major to date.
• He also had his best career season on the PGA TOUR finishing 45th in the FedEx Cup standings.

Ends.