Wilkin breaks 30-year course record to lead Mandiri Indonesia Open
Australian Aaron Wilkin sensationally broke Frank Nobilo’s 30-year course record at Damai Indah Golf – PIK Course today to take the first-round lead in the US$500,000 Mandiri Indonesia Open.
His blemish-free 10-under-par 61, one better than New Zealander Nobilo’s – which he carded at this event in 1994 – was made up of 10 birdies and gave him a three-shot lead over Australian Andrew Dodt, in with a 64.
Rookie professional Sampson Zheng from China is next best placed after a 65, along with Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai.
Wilkin, a graduate from last year’s Asian Development Tour, where he won the BRG Open Golf Championship – which is actually being played this week in Vietnam – started on 10 and had a stunning run of holes making five birdies in his last six on the back nine, including three in a row from 13.
“Not much went wrong today,” said the 31-year-old, whose other big career win came at the 2022 Queensland PGA Championship.
Andrew Dodt. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.
“It was one of those days. I hit it close on four or five holes. I had a couple of easy tap ins, then holed a few nice putts and didn’t make any mistakes. Yeah, I will take that for sure. There was some lucky stuff today, which I am going to take and run with it.”
Dodt is a three-time champion on the Asian Tour, his most recent the Sarawak Championship in 2019, but his game has been out of sorts of late, so today’s round gave him a huge lift.
Commented the Australian: “It was pretty good, better than what it has been. I feel like I have found something in my swing last week. I have really struggled with my swing last 12 months. Hopefully I have turned the corner with that. Had some luck. Hit some good shots. Hit some bad shots.”
He had an eagle, six birdies and dropped one shot. His eagle came on the par five 17th where his second shot with a three-wood landed just short of the green from where he holed out from five metres.
“I missed the green on the par-three seventh. It was a pretty ordinary lie, and I used a rescue club from off the green and it went in. That was a bonus,” he added.
Sampson Zheng. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.
Zheng’s fine round was just reward for arriving early to practice for the event.
Aged 23 and a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, he has been quick to impress this year. He tied for fourth in the International Series England three weeks ago and made light work of the course today with eight birdies and two bogeys.
“It was good. I did what I wanted to do for the best part. I kept my ball under control and made a few putts,” said Zheng, who was runner-up at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship in Royal Melbourne last year, losing in a play-off to Australian Jasper Stubbs.
“It is my first time Indonesia. It’s hot, it’s humid. It’s very different from England, where we played last.
“I got here Friday night, a bit earlier than everyone else. Practiced on the range at the weekend, just getting used to the weather.”
This is only his fourth start on the Asian Tour. He was still an amateur for his first two appearances.
Thailand’s Phachara Khongwatmai, Danthai Boonma, Poosit Supupramai and Suradit Yongcharoenchai, Chinese-Taipei’s Chang Wei-lun plus Denzel Ieremia from New Zealand returned 66s.
Thailand’s Panuphol ‘Coconut’ Pittayarat, the winner of this event in 2017, at a different venue, plus Steve Lewton from England, joint runner-up last year, are in a group on 67.
Suteepat Prateeptienchai. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.
Defending champion Nitithorn Thippong from Thailand shot a 69.
Indian Gaganjeet Bhullar, the record three time winner of this event, needs to make up ground after a 73.
Thailand’s Nitithorn Thippong begins the defence of his Mandiri Indonesia Open title tomorrow at Damai Indah Golf, PIK Course, low on confidence, after a poor start to the season, but drawing on inspiration from his win 12 months ago when he was in a similar situation.
“Here we are again,” said the young hotshot, whose nickname is “Fever”.
“My game is not in great shape. The short game is great but tee to green I have got some problems with that. I am still working on it.
“Last year was the same but I found something before I came to this event, so who knows what will happen.”
He also faces a different golf course this year as last season Pondok Indah Golf Course was the host venue – where he recorded his third victory on the Asian Tour, after wins in The DGC Open presented by Mastercard in 2022, and the International Series Singapore the same year.
Nitithorn Thippong’s win last year was his third on the Asian Tour. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.
The 27-year-old has only made four cuts in eight starts this year, a disappointing run for the talented golfer but a glimmer of hope was offered at the International Series England three weeks ago.
He tied for 13th there, at Foxhills in Surrey, and is hoping that will help kickstart his season.
He said: “This year has been a lot of ups and downs. I played really good in England but before that I didn’t play well. I got some good feelings from England so hope that helps get me on track for the rest of the year.”
He was languishing in 51st position on the Asian Tour Order of Merit on the eve of last year’s event, and this season he sits in 79th place.
“I have got a lot of things to work on with my swing now which I am trying to get used to,” said Nitithorn, who played on the Asian Development Tour from 2015 to 2019 before finding feet on the main tour post the Covid-19 pandemic.
“It’s great to be in this position as defending champion. It feels really good to have this chance.”
He won by two shots last year from Australian Scott Hend, England’s Steve Lewton and Chinese-Taipei’s Lee Chieh-po, having been pushed all the way after starting the last day with a five-shot cushion.
Nitithorn pictured winning last year. Picture by Graham Uden / Asian Tour.
That win literally came together at the last minute as something in his swing clicked when he was playing a practice round with his girlfriend the week before.
He tees-off tomorrow at 11.50am with Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho and local star Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra once more looking for that self-belief that has made him one of the Asian Tour’s most exciting young golfers.
Tournament Information
- Tournament: Mandiri Indonesia Open
- Venue: Damai Indah Golf, PIK Course
- Date: August 29 – September 1, 2024
- Purse: US$500,000 (winner US$90,000)
- Asian Tour leg: 10th event of 2024 season
- Course Par/Yards: 71 / 7,100 yards
- Total number of players: 150
- Format: 72-hole stroke play with a cut made after two rounds. Leading 65 pros plus ties make it through to the weekend
- Social Media Hashtags: #MIO2024 #TimeToRise
Nitithorn Thippong is this week’s defending champion. Picture by Graham Uden/Asian Tour.
Field Breakdown
- Order of Merit winners: Scott Hend (2016)
- Number of Nationalities: 24
- Past winners in field: Nitithorn Thippong (THA) 2023, Gaganjeet Bhullar (IND) 2022, 2016 & 2013, Miguel Carballo (ARG) 2019, Panuphol Pittayarat (THA) 2017
- Defending champion: Nitithorn Thippong (THA)
- Top contenders: Nitithorn Thippong (THA), Travis Smyth (AUS) Gaganjeet Bhullar (IND), Sadom Kaewkanjana (THA), Sampson Zheng (CHN), Taichi Kho (HKG), Miguel Tabuena (PHI)
- Highest ranked player on OWGR: Travis Smyth (AUS) #315
- Highest ranked player on 2024 Asian Tour Order of Merit: Travis Smyth (AUS) #12
- Number of amateurs: 13
- Number of Indonesian players in the field: 41
Sadom Kaewkanjana has arrived in Indonesia in-form having tied for fourth in England. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
Tournament Notes
- Australian Travis Smyth is having a good season with three top 10s so far, with a T5 at the International Series Morocco as his best result. The winner of the 2022 Yeangder TPC has finished fourth and seventh on the Asian Tour Order of Merit in the last two seasons and will be looking for a return to the winner’s circle this week to boost him up the rankings. He is the highest ranked player in the field.
- Gaganjeet Bhullar of India is always dangerous in Indonesia, having won five of his 11 Asian Tour titles in the country. In addition to winning the Mandiri Indonesia Open three times in his career, he also won the 2023 BNI Indonesian Masters and the 2009 Indonesia President Invitational. The latter his first Asian Tour victory.
- Thailand’s Sadom Kaewkanjana did not have the best start to his 2024 season but looks like he’s back on track after finishing T4 in the International Series England at Foxhills three weeks ago. Sadom is a two-time winner on the Asian Tour, having claimed the 2022 SMBC Singapore Open and the 2019 Bangabandhu Cup Golf Open.
- Sampson Zheng from China was a highly ranked amateur before he turned pro earlier this summer, and the 2023 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship runner up. He was ranked 13th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Zheng posted his best finish so far as a pro with a T4 at the recent International Series England and will be aiming to top that result this week in Jakarta.
- Australian Scott Hend posted the first of his 10 Asian Tour victories at Damai Indah Golf PIK course in the 2008 Pertamina Indonesia President Invitational, and he is having a solid season so far with a solo second in the New Zealand Open and a T8 at the Saudi Open presented by PIF as his best results.
- The last time the Mandiri Indonesia Open was held at Damai Indah Golf PIK Course was in 2014, and it was three-time Major winner Padraig Harrington of Ireland who came out victorious by two shots over Thailand’s Thanyakon Khrongpha. Gaganjeet Bhullar won the first of his Indonesia Open tiles at Damai Indah Golf PIK Course the year before.
- Up-and-coming Indonesian star Jonathan Wijono will lead the local challenge following a sparkling performance in the recent International Series England. He shot a scorching nine-under-par 64 in the final round in England enroute to finishing ninth and will be hoping his putter will be equally as hot as he tries to become only the second Indonesian to win his country’s National Open, after Kasiadi in 1989. Wijono is among an exciting crop of young Indonesia golfers starting to make their name in the game who are also competing this week. They include Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra and Kevin Akbar – both winners on the Asian Development Tour – plus amateur Gabriel Hansel Hari, who tied ninth last year.
Defending champion Nitithorn Thippong from Thailand and Indian Gaganjeet Bhullar, a record three-time winner of the event, headline a formidable field at this week’s US$500,000 Mandiri Indonesia Open.
The tournament starts Thursday at Damai Indah Golf, PIK Course – which last hosted the tournament in 2014, when Ireland’s Padraig Harrington triumphed – and is the 10th event of the season on the Asian Tour, helping to mark the turn into the second half of the season.
Nitithorn (main picture) was victorious at Pondok Indah Golf Course 12 months ago, where Bhullar won the year before and also in 2016. The Indian has the significant advantage of having triumphed at Damai Indah Golf, PIK Course in 2013, plus boasts an unrivalled record in Indonesia with five of his 11 wins on the Asian Tour coming here. Malaysian Nicholas Fung and Chapchai Nirat from Thailand, both second to Bhullar in 2013, are also in the field this week and will look to try and turn back the clock with strong performances.
A number of players who excelled in the most recent Asian Tour event, the International Series England three weeks ago, are also here looking to build on those performances.
Gaganjeet Bhullar pictured winning in 2022 for a record third time. Picture by Graham Uden / Asian Tour.
Thailand’s Sadom Kaewkanjana and Chinese rookie Sampson Zheng, who tied for fourth in England, and Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho, who was 10th, have made the trip to Indonesia, as has Filipino Miguel Tabuena, who has shown signs of returning to form lately with top-10 finishes in the International Series Morocco and the Kolon Korea Open.
Other past champions in the field at Argentina’s Miguel Carballo, the 2019 champion, and Panuphol ‘Coconut’ Pittarayat from Thailand, the winner in 2017. Both their wins came at Pondok Indah Golf Course.
Another player who caught the eye in England and who will lead the local challenge this week is Jonathan Wijono. The up-and-coming golfer shot a scorching nine-under-par 64 in the final round in England enroute to finishing ninth and will be hoping his putter will be equally as hot as he tries to become only the second Indonesian to win his country’s National Open, after Kasiadi in 1989. The event was played at Jakarta Golf Club that year.
Wijono is among an exciting crop of young Indonesia golfers starting to make their name in the game who are also competing this week. They include Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra and Kevin Akbar – both winners on the Asian Development Tour – plus amateur Gabriel Hansel Hari, who tied ninth last year.
Also teeing off this week are Australian Scott Hend, Steve Lewton from England and Chinese-Taipei’s Lee Chieh-po, all looking to go one better after tying for second last August.
A top-10 finish in the International Series England is the perfect warm up for Jonathan Wijono. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
This year marks the third successive time Mandiri have title sponsored the Indonesia Open.
The host venue’s course is known locally as “The Spirit of the Sea” as it lies close to the coastline of the Java Sea, in North Jakarta and was designed by legendary golf course architect, Robert Trent Jones Jr.
Asian Tour member Jinichiro Kozuma made it win number three on the Japan Golf Tour Organisation by winning the Sansan KBC Augusta yesterday at Keya Golf Club, Fukuoka.
The Japanese golfer, who has also been playing on the LIV Golf League this season, beat countryman Yuwa Kosaihira on the second hole of a sudden-death play-off.
Kozuma looked to be cruising to victory in normal time with a two-shot lead with two to play but surprisingly bogeyed the last two holes, while Kosaihira sensationally draw level with two closing birdies.
However, the wheels came off for Kosaihira as he drove out of bounds on the second play-off hole, where Kozuma made par.
The pair had finished tied on 19-under, with Kozuma shooting a 69 and Kosaihira a 65.
Jinchiro Kozuma (right) triumphant after finishing top-three at LIV Golf Promotions. Picture by Paul Lakatos /Asian Tour.
“After the bogey on 17, I thought I could win if I could make par on 18. But I couldn’t swing fully with my tee shot and the ball ended up in the right bunker. The resulting par putt wasn’t an easy line, but I hit it where I wanted. However, I misread the line,” said Kozuma.
“This is the first time my family is watching me in contention on the final day. I wanted to win it so badly for them. Winning in front of my family has always been a goal and I’m glad I achieved it today.”
He also claimed one of his other titles in Japan, the Token Homemate Cup in 2022, in a play-off.
The 30-year-old has yet to win on the Asian Tour. He’s played a handful of events over the past few seasons, with his best result coming in last year’s season-ending Saudi Open presented by PIF, where he tied fourth.
He made headlines in last year’s LIV Golf Promotions event where he again prevailed in extra time to claim one of the three spots available on this year’s LIV Golf League.
He plays for the league’s Iron Heads GC team with fellow Asian Tour player Scott Vincent from Zimbabwe, Danny Lee from New Zealand, and American Kevin Na – their captain.
He was ninth individually in Adelaide for his highest finish on the multi-million dollar franchise this year.
The SJM Macao Open is proud to announce defending champion Min Woo Lee will be back to compete in the tournament this year, further solidifying the tournament’s status as one of the marquee tournaments on the Asian Tour calendar.
The prestigious event, set against the picturesque backdrop of the Macau Golf and Country Club, will be held from October 10-13, 2024.
Lee’s performance at last year’s SJM Macao Open was nothing short of spectacular. The Australian star secured a two-shot victory over Thailand’s Poom Saksansin, for his first title in two years. Lee set a new tournament record with a 30-under-par score across four days, just two strokes shy of the Asian Tour record.
He expressed his excitement about returning: “I’m thrilled to be going back to the SJM Macao Open. Last year was an incredible experience, and winning with a record score was a highlight of my season. I have great memories of the course and the fantastic support from the fans. I’m looking forward to another amazing week in Macao and hope to defend my title.”
Min Woo Lee celebrating his win 12 months ago. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
This year marks a significant anniversary for both the People’s Republic of China, which celebrates the 75th anniversary of its founding, and Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), which commemorates a quarter-century since reunification. Known for its vibrant culture and world-class hospitality, Macao is the ultimate destination for both sports and leisure, offering a unique blend of historical charm and modern grandeur.
Building on a successful inaugural year as the title sponsor, and being the co-organiser this year, SJM Resorts, S.A. (SJM) continues its pivotal role, underscoring its commitment to elevating Macao’s profile on the international stage. The partnership has been instrumental in enhancing the event’s stature, ensuring that the SJM Macao Open remains a highlight of the golfing calendar.
Ms. Daisy Ho, Managing Director of SJM, said: “SJM is privileged to once again be the title sponsor and co-organiser for the second consecutive year. Sports tourism, characterised by its engaging, exciting, and participatory nature, not only draws international visitors from afar but also encourages them to return frequently to immerse themselves in the local community and partake in the spectacles. Therefore, SJM will continue to proactively orchestrate high-quality branded sports events, leveraging ‘Tourism + Sports’ synergy to establish a distinctive regional sports tourism ecosystem in Macao. With a deep-rooted history in golf, SJM is committed to dedicating our full efforts to this year’s event, ensuring it continues to grow from strength to strength.”
Since its inception, the Macao Open has been a cornerstone of the golfing calendar, hosted annually at the Macau Golf and Country Club. The tournament has consistently attracted top-tier talent, including Major winners Ernie Els, Nick Faldo, John Daly, and Vijay Singh, along with prolific global stars Miguel-Angel Jimenez, Branden Grace, Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and Thongchai Jaidee, cementing its reputation as one of the top golf events in Asia. The 21st edition of the tournament promises to once again attract top talent from around the globe, competing for a prize fund of US$1 million.
Min Woo Lee held off a spirited challenge by Poom Saksansin last year. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
Mr. Luís Gomes, Acting President of the Sports Bureau of the Macao SAR Government, emphasised the significance of hosting the event: “This year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of Macao’s return to the motherland. Hosting the SJM Macao Open showcases Macao’s development and vitality, further promoting the construction of the ‘City of Sports’ and supporting Macao’s ‘1+4’ appropriately diversified economic development strategy. I would like to express my gratitude to SJM for their contribution to the tournament, as well as to all parties for their support and cooperation, which has ensured the smooth preparation of this event.”
Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & CEO of the Asian Tour, added: “The SJM Macao Open stands out as a flagship event on our tour, known for its competitive field and stunning location. We are grateful for the support of SJM, the Sports Bureau of Macao, the Macao Golf Association and IMG, which ensures the success and prestige of this tournament.”
Johnny Senna Fernandes, President of the Macao Golf Association, remarked: “The SJM Macao Open is a beloved event for both players and fans. Its longstanding history at the Macau Golf and Country Club speaks to the quality and prestige of the tournament. We are excited to continue this tradition and celebrate Macao’s 25th anniversary with another exceptional edition of the SJM Macao Open.”
Grant Slack, EVP & Managing Director, Golf Events of IMG, remarked: “The SJM Macao Open has firmly established itself as a premier event on the Asian Tour. IMG will continue to work closely with SJM, the Sports Bureau of Macao, the Macao Golf Association, the Asian Tour, to deliver a world-class experience for players and spectators alike. We are excited to welcome the golfing world back to Macao.”
Today marked the start of a new era for Hong Kong’s oldest professional sporting event with the announcement that leading international real estate investor and asset manager Link Asset Management Limited (LINK) will title sponsor the Hong Kong Open for the next three years starting from 2024.
One of Asia’s oldest and most prestigious golf championships, the LINK Hong Kong Open will be played at The Hong Kong Golf Club in Fanling from 21-24 November. It is the 63rd staging of the popular event.
This year also marks the 135th anniversary of The Hong Kong Golf Club, which has hosted the Open since 1959 – ranking it alongside the renowned Augusta National Golf Club and the US Masters as the only golf clubs that have hosted the same professional tournament for over 60 years.
The new sponsorship was announced today at a press conference at The Hong Kong Golf Club at Deep Water Bay with LINK Chief Executive Officer Mr George Hongchoy joining Hong Kong Golf Club Captain Mr Andy Kwok; Mr David Rollo, Chief Operating Officer of the Asian Tour; and Dr Kelvin Inge, President of the Golf Association of Hong Kong, China, in teeing off this year’s excitement.
Officials at today’s LINK Hong Kong Open press conference.
Kwok said: “We cannot wait to welcome back world-class golfers and fans from the Greater Bay Area and beyond for the 63rd edition of the Hong Kong Open at Fanling in this, our 135th anniversary year. This historic championship, the oldest professional sporting event in Hong Kong, always captures the imagination, and with the support of Link Asset Management, we are looking forward to putting on a great show for the community at large.”
Hongchoy said: “The LINK Hong Kong Open is a marquee event that showcases our city’s world-class golfing experience, attracting professional and amateur golfers both locally and internationally. Hong Kong’s golf is something that we should be proud of and something worthy of promoting on a bigger scale and making more accessible to local communities. Supporting the Hong Kong Open is a perfect opportunity to showcase LINK as a Hong Kong headquartered company with deep ties to the local community that embraces regional opportunities.”
The LINK Hong Kong Open is again a part of this season’s 10-event The International Series. In its first year on the Series in 2023 the Hong Kong Open was named International Series Tournament of the Year and one of the Players’ Choice for Course of the Year.
International Series tournaments are enhanced to provide more playing opportunities with elevated prize funds and a pathway to the biggest stages in golf. The leading points-scorer in The International Series Rankings receives exemption into the following season’s LIV Golf League.
Held throughout the year across Asia, Europe and the Middle East, The International Series contributes US$23.5 million to the Asian Tour’s 2024 total prize fund. The LINK Hong Kong Open will feature a prize purse of US$2million in 2024.
“We welcome LINK to the growing number of commercial partners involved with Asian Tour. A supporter with the reach and stature of LINK is the ideal partner for one of the region’s foundational golf championships, and we are excited about the knock-on effect this will have on the continued growth of the game in China.
Ben Campbell pictured after winning last year’s event. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
“We are especially excited to feature this historic championship as one of the events on the ground-breaking International Series,” said Rollo.
Rollo’s comments were echoed by Mr Rahul Singh, Head of The International Series, who said: “The success of the Hong Kong Open as an event on The International Series last season is evident with Hong Kong being named one of the Players’ choices for Course of the Year as well as the most coveted award of Tournament of the Year. As one of the world’s great cities with one of the world’s great golf clubs, Hong Kong is the perfect city to host an International Series event and we look forward to returning in 2024,” said Mr Singh.
Asian Tour star Taichi Kho, reigning gold medallist of the Asian Games, proud Medal of Honour recipient and first Hong Kong-born winner on the Asian Tour, at the 2023 World City Championship Presented by The Hong Kong Golf Club, joined today’s announcement by video conference.
“I am excited to be returning to the Hong Kong Open in 2024 and want to congratulate the tournament on its new partnership with LINK. It is great to see Hong Kong brands supporting iconic events like the Hong Kong Open which proves that golf continues to go from strength to strength in the city.
“The Hong Kong Open and Hong Kong Golf Club has had a formative role in my career, and I am really looking forward to playing alongside some of the world’s best in front of my home galleries again this November. I hope to see many local fans in Fanling at the LINK Hong Kong Open,” said Kho, last season’s Asian Tour Rookie of the Year.
Kho will be joined at his home Open by defending champion Ben Campbell of New Zealand. Campbell beat Australia’s Cameron Smith and Thailand’s Phachara Khongwatmai by one stroke last year in an emotional victory after recovering from a debilitating injury. He has maintained his form since then, enjoying a series of strong results, including a second win on The International Series in Morocco this July.
Taichi Kho will try to become the first local player to win the Hong Kong Open. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour.
Other international stars participating will be revealed in the coming weeks, but one of the game’s true legends in Mr Gary Player is confirmed to appear at Fanling after being named the ambassador for the tournament in 2024.
Player, an inductee into the World Golf Hall of Fame, is widely known as golf’s premier international ambassador. As one of the sport’s most decorated winners worldwide with 165 tournament victories on six continents over seven decades, Player is the perfect ambassador for the LINK Hong Kong Open, which has been a catalyst for the growth of the game in Asia since the 1950s.
LINK Hong Kong Open 2024 is the latest in a series of professional tournaments that have drawn tens of thousands of local fans and tourists to Hong Kong Golf Club since 2023, including last year’s Hong Kong Open, the Aramco Team Series and the World City Championship, and the debut of LIV Golf in Hong Kong earlier this year.
Amongst these world-class sports and entertainment events, the tradition and lore of the Hong Kong Open stands alone.
The Hong Kong Open list of past champions reads like a who’s who of global golf with some of the most impressive names in the game’s history, from Asian legends like Hsieh Yung-yo to western stars like Peter Thomson, Ian Woosnam, Greg Norman, Bernhard Langer, Tom Watson, Rory McIlroy, Jose Maria Olazabal, and Miguel Angel Jimenez, winner of the event record four times.
With continuing International Series status and a chance to make golf history on the line, another field of world-class stars is expected to thrill the audiences flocking to the LINK Hong Kong Open 2024.
In keeping with the tournament and title sponsor’s vision to take golf to all communities of Hong Kong, ticket prices for the LINK Hong Kong Open 2024 have been frozen at last year’s levels.
Admission to the opening rounds on Thursday and Friday, 21-22 November, is free for the public.
Daily prices for Saturday and Sunday 23 and 24 November are HK$200 per day or HK$300 for a weekend pass. Tickets will be on sale soon.
July was arguably the biggest month to date in the career of Thailand’s Denwit ‘David’ Boriboonsub. The Open at Royal Troon dominated his schedule and although it did not go according to plan the takeaways from the experience are potentially career changing. David was speaking to Asian Tour contributor and former Tour player Olle Nordberg.
One tournament, and one tournament alone, dominated July for me, and that was The Open at Royal Troon – and what an experience it proved to be.
My first time playing in a Major was disappointing in terms of the result, as I missed the cut following rounds of 78 and 80, but conditions were extremely difficult. However, the week was invaluable in terms of what I learned and the experience I gained.
I stayed at the Marine Hotel on site at Troon, which was great because many of the top players stayed there as well, including Rory McIlroy and his coach Michael Bannon, as well as Brad Faxon, and Tony Finau. Like, a lot of the good players were staying there. I had a chance to talk a bit with Brad, as well as Ernie Els and Rory’s physical coach, so that was nice.
In total I played Troon 11 times before The Open, that’s counting the rounds I played there earlier this summer too. When the official practice rounds started the week of the tournament, I had some really good players in my groups. The first group that I played with on Monday had Ben An and the Korean guys, it was pretty fun. And the second group, on Tuesday, I played with Matt Fitzpatrick, Ludvig Aberg and Vincent Norrman. Yeah, all PGA Tour players.
David Boriboonsub played 11 practice rounds at Royal Troon before The Open . Picture by Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty Images.
That was also great fun; watching PGA Tour players hit was just so different, it was just next level. Their ball striking, distance and strength was amazing. I realised my body has got to get stronger to be like Ludvig or Matt, got to be stronger. They were hitting it miles, sometimes 30 yards longer than me.
So now I will start a fitness program to work out more, and I started doing some speed training right after I got back from The Open and before the International Series England at Foxhills.
Standing on the first tee on the opening day of The Open I was nervous. Before that, I didn’t think I was going to be nervous because I have played in many events with top players before. But I guess I was nervous playing in a Major for the first time. I chunked a two-iron on the opening hole – yeah, I was nervous.
At The Open I didn’t really feel that confident about my game; it didn’t feel like it did compared to the Saudi Open presented by PIF or those other events I won last year. When I won those events, I was a bit more confident because it was just about my own game and not who I was playing with or against. My driving and irons were a bit off at The Open, it was a struggle from the beginning, and I couldn’t hit it close to the pins.
The course itself is not that difficult, it’s difficult because of the wind, the rain and the bunkers. The three of those, but mostly the wind, made the course really difficult. I had never played in a wind that strong in a tournament before.
I was disappointed to miss the cut, but it’s still the best experience that I’ve had in my golf career so far because it’s a Major, and there are not many chances to play an event like that for Asian golfers. So, it was still the best experience, and I wish I could go back there every year by making it through one of the qualifiers again.
Boriboonsub stands with his caddie Apisit Kumkasame at The Open – his first appearance in a Major. Picture by Harry How/Getty Images.
After missing the cut I stayed around for the weekend and went back home on Monday. Went back to Thailand and did some club fitting, changed to a new set of irons and changed grips on all my clubs as well. The irons are the same ones I used before but fresh ones.
Heading into the International Series England a few weeks later my game was feeling great. I felt like I could find the fairways; my irons were getting better; and my putting too, as I went back to an old putter – the one that I won three events in-a-row with late last year.
Foxhills is a very tight course. It’s like a shot-by-shot course, where it’s best not to be aggressive, I think, more of a laying-up course. The course suited my game pretty well, but, unfortunately, I didn’t feel well from the first day onwards. I was a bit sick, a bit sneezy, and just to be able to finish four days was a result. So, I’m pretty happy with my scores: I shot rounds of 69, 70, 72, 70 and tied for 36th.
Next up is the BNI Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament in Indonesia this week on the Asian Development Tour, which will be a good warm up for the Mandiri Indonesia Open in Jakarta next week.
It’s the start of the second half of the season now so it’s time to put some scores on the doors.
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