Hong Kong’s Taichi Kho will commence the defence of his Asian Games individual title tomorrow – when the event’s golf tournament tees-off on the East Course at Kasugai Country Club in Japan.

In what will arguably be the biggest participation of Asian Tour members in a tournament outside of an Asian Tour event, Kho will lead 20 members out of a starting field of 66 players.

Three years ago Kho became the first player from Hong Kong to win the gold medal, when the Games was held in Hangzhou, China. The quadrennial event was due to be played in 2022 but was pushed back a year because of the global pandemic.

He also helped the Hong Kong team – which consisted of himself, Matthew Cheung, Jason Hak and Ng Shing Fung – claim the bronze medal.

Presently, sitting in third place on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, thanks to a brilliant win at the International Series Morocco in July, Kho is in fine form and is also hoping that familiarity with his team and the host nation will be a big help.

“Really excited,” said Kho, who is joined this year once more by Cheung and Hak.

“It’s in Nagoya, so a little closer to where I’ve been playing this year, which I think I’ll have some experience over there, which will be nice. We have pretty much the same team again, so yeah, I’m really looking forward to the week.”

Last week’s winner of the Mercuries Taiwan Masters Hung Chien-yao is competing in the Asian Games after winning bronze last time. Picture by Graham Uden.

He beat PGA Tour star Im Sung-jae by a shot to win the gold. Remarkably it was in his first season as a professional and not long after his famous first victory on Asian Tour at the World City Championship.

He said: “I think winning that gold medal last time was probably still the best golf I’ve ever played. I was 22 under through two rounds, having opened with a 62 and 60 and I was just completely in the zone. I was able to fend off some really great players on the weekend. So, I think until that tap and drop on the last hole, it hadn’t really sunk in, and when that tap went in, I was, yeah, full of joy.”

Im lead the Korean team, along with Kim Si-woo, Jang Yu-bin and Cho Woo-young, to the team gold, while Thailand took the silver. The Thai team consisted of Atiruj Winaicharoenchai, Danthai Boonma, Poom Saksansin, and Phachara Khongwatmai.

“I think going back to Asian Games, it’s about being with your teammates, about the people you grew up playing with,” said Kho.

“So, I’m really looking forward to playing with those guys that I’ve grown up playing with, and the coaches, and you know, even the girls’ team. So I’m really looking forward to that.”

He will be attempting to become the first player to win more than one gold medal in the individual category.

Poom is the only member of the Thai team from three years ago who is back this time. He is joined by Sadom Kaewkanjana and Laopakdee ‘Fifa’ Pongsapak, the amateur star who won the Asian Amateur Championship and SEA Games gold medal last year.

Hung Chien-yao, winner of last week’s Mercuries Taiwan Masters, claimed the individual bronze three years ago and is once again part of the Chinese-Taipei team, along with Chan Shih-chang and Wang Wei-hsuan.

Miguel Tabuena is also competing, having last played in 2000 when he won the silver media individually.

Reigning Asian Tour Order of Merit champion Kazuki Higa is part of the Japan team.

Tom Kim, the 2020-2022 Asian Tour Order of Merit champion now plying his trade on the PGA TOUR with great success, is representing Korea, along with ⁠Doyeob Mun and Kim Seonghyeon.

The men’s tournament is happening at the same time as the women’s event, on the same course.

This year is the 20^th edition of the Asian Games, officially known as Aichi-Nagoya 2026. It is being held mainly in Aichi Prefecture and its capital city, Nagoya.

It is the third time Japan has hosted the multi-sport event, following Tokyo in 1958 and Hiroshima in 1994.

Approximately 11,000 athletes are competing in over 43 sports featuring 469 medal events.

Miguel Tabuena. Picture by Graham Uden.

Full list of Asian Tour members competing at the Asian Games:

Bangladesh: ⁠Siddikur Rahman

China: ⁠Sampson Zheng, Jin Zihao

Chinese-Taipei: Chan Shih-chang, Hung Chien-yao, Wang Wei-hsuan

Hong Kong: Matthew Cheung, Jason Shunyat Hak, Taichi Kho

India: ⁠Yuvraj Sandhu

Indonesia: Naraajie Ramadhanputra, Jonathan Wijono

Japan: ⁠Kazuki Higa

Korea: ⁠Doyeob Mun

Philippines: Miguel Tabuena, Carl Jano Corpus

Singapore: James Leo, Nicklaus Chiam

Thailand: ⁠Sadom Kaewkanjana, Poom Saksansin

Asian Games tee-times and results here

Main picture: Taichi Kho with his Asian Games gold medal. Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.