Scorzato shows his love for Asia with lead in the Philippines
June 18: Argentina’s Franco Scorzato may be struggling with the language and food in Asia, but proved once again that his golf is ready to flower in the continent. For the second successive event on the Asian Development Tour, he moved into contention, snatching the halfway lead in the inaugural US$100,000 DigiPlus Philippine ADT Open.
At the par-72 Luisita Golf and Country Club, Scorzato birdied the 18th hole to shoot a six-under-par 66 round and reached a 10-under-par total after 36 holes. That gave him a one-shot edge over Chinese Taipei’s Ching-hung Su (70), and Japan’s Naoki Sekito (69), who were tied second at nine-under par.
Macau’s Kelvin Si (70) moved to solo fourth place at 138, one ahead of Australia’s Darcy Brereton (67), American Brent Ito (70) and Thai Suttinon Panyo (67).
Overnight leader, Thomas Plumb of England slipped to tied seventh place at six-under total after a round of 74, where he was joined by Malaysians Galven Green (69) and Marcus Lim (72) and Italian Michele Ortolan (68).
Naoki Sekito of Japan. Picture by Ryan Tambalque/ADT
The tournament is offering spots in the US$2 million Philippine Open on The International Series later in the year to the two leading Filipino golfers. Of the 45 Filipino players that made the starting field, 15 made the cut with Sean Ramos (71) the best placed at tied 12th place at five-under par total.
The 23-year-old Scorzato was second by two shots going into the final round of the am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars earlier this month, but did not have the best Sunday and dropped to tied 12th place. He was confident he had learned enough from his experience to do better this week.
“I’ve played very well over the last two days. My tee shots in particular have been very good and I have been able to take advantage by putting myself in the right positions,” said Scorzato, who made eight birdies in his round.
“Yes, I was in a great position going into that final round in Morocco, but I unfortunately didn’t have a good day. It’s all about the experiences and the learning. I think it will help me going forward into the weekend rounds this week and in the future.”
Ching Hung Su of Chinese Taipei. Picture by Ryan Tambalque/ADT
On his first year in Asia, Scorzato added: “It’s been an incredible experience thus far, from the people, the tournaments to the organisers and the incredible countries I have visited for the very first time.
“I first heard about the Asian Tour via my friend Miguel Carballo (a two-time ADT and Korn Ferry Tour champion). He has been on the Asian Tour for many years and I made the decision to try it out and managed to join through Q School.
“I’ve really enjoyed all the countries I have visited so far. The biggest challenge so far for me is the food and I haven’t quite managed to get accustomed to it yet, but the level of hospitality in all these places has truly been incredible. The people have been so welcoming and amazing.”
Sekito, a three-time champion on the ADT, showed his class on a day when he did not hit the ball too well. He hit only 10 fairways and was one-over after his first eight holes, but somehow battled it out for a three-under 69 in the end.
Sean Ramos of the Philippines. Picture by Ryan Tambalque/ADT
“Compared to yesterday, I would say my hitting was quite bad today. I hit only 10 greens, but I still made a lot of good ups and downs, and like yesterday, my caddy helped me a lot on the green. I had like a 20-footer for birdie on the last hole, and I made it. So, I’m very happy to finish with 69 today,” said Nekito, who is playing his third ADT event of the season.
The 28-year-old revealed he suddenly increased his swing speed while practicing with a baseball bat during the winter months in Japan last year. That led to a drastic change in his club set-up. He is also playing with a new driver and three-wood this week.
“I think last year, I almost changed all 14 clubs in the bag. I used to have six hybrids, so my longest iron was six-iron until last year, but I have my four-iron back now. I started hitting longer last year, and I had to change everything,” said Sekito, whose last ADT win was the 2023 OB Golf Championship.
“I don’t really go to the gym and work out, but last year, when I had no events, like in the first two- three months, I kept on swinging a heavy baseball bat. And once the weather started getting warm, I saw I was actually hitting it longer.”
Including the visit to the Philippines, the ADT is set to have tournaments in seven countries this season. It will also travel to Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Morocco, Thailand, and Saudi Arabia.
June 17: Thomas Plumb (main image) snatched a narrow one-shot lead in the opening round of the inaugural US$100,000 DigiPlus Philippine ADT Open on the Asian Development Tour following a clean card with eight birdies on Wednesday.
Englishman Plumb’s eight-under-par 64 was one better than Chinese Taipei’s Ching-hung Su (65), who recorded a similar number of birdies but slipped because of one bogey on his card.
At the par-72 Luisita Golf and Country Club, Malaysia’s Marcus Lim, Japan’s Naoki Sekito, Korea’s Jaeil Kim, and Macau’s Kelvin Si were tied third with rounds of 66, while American Brent Ito and Hong Kong’s Hoho Yue were a shot further behind at 67.
Ching Hung Su of Chinese Taipei. Picture by Ryan Tambalque/ADT
The tournament is offering spots in the Philippine Open on The International Series later in the year to the two leading Filipino golfers. That race was already heating up with five players – Sean Ramos, Fidel Concepcion, James Ryan Lam, Jeffren Lumbo, and amateur Shinichi Suzuki – tied ninth at 68, alongside the reigning ADT Order of Merit champion Nicklaus Chiam of Singapore.
The 27-year-old Plumb has been playing on various development tours in Europe, before his friend Sam Broadhurst, who graduated to the Asian Tour from the ADT last year, managed to convince him to come out to Asia. That decision is looking like a good one as Plumb felt comfortable in the hot conditions.
Playing in the afternoon session from the first tee, he made two birdies on his first eight holes, and then added half a dozen more over the next 10 holes.
Marcus Lim of Malaysia. Picture by Ryan Tambalque/ADT
“Before I started out in Asia on ADT, Sam was the first person who kind of gave me the nudge to come out here. I played a Q School event with him last year at Huddersfield, and he was like, you need to do it, you need to go and try it. He’s loved it out here, and I don’t see myself going anywhere else for a minute. This has been so much fun,” said Plumb, making his first visit to the Philippines.
“Today, I got off to a fairly slow start, a few pars, and then just the birdies kept coming after that. I holed a few, and then it was kind of steady. I just played really well. It was perfect.
“I birdied the 10th, 11th, and 12th, and then it just kind of kick-started there, and all of a sudden, I was minus six through 12. I thought I could actually get a good round going, like a really low one.
“I was always in play off the tee, and never really hit it outside of 20-25 feet. From that range, you feel like you’re never going to make a bogey from there. So, I think the biggest part of the game that went well was just hitting it close.”
Sean Ramos of the Philippines. Picture by Ryan Tambalque/ADT
Ching-hung started from the 10th tee with three birdies in a row, before making the turn with his solitary bogey on the 18th hole. On his back nine, he added more birdies on the third and fourth holes, and added a second hat-trick of birdies from the sixth to eighth holes.
Lim started with four birdies in his first five holes but rued the two bogeys on the two par-three holes of the front nine of the course (his back nine, having started from the 10th tee).
“I just played. I was solid today. I had a good start and just tried to stay calm after that. However, when I crossed over, I made two bogeys on both the par three holes (second and sixth), which were big mistakes. I made two three-putts, and that is something that I want to avoid tomorrow.”
Including the visit to the Philippines, the ADT is set to have tournaments in seven countries this season. It will also travel to Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Morocco, Thailand, and Saudi Arabia.
May 31: Tanapat Pichaikool showed that he was over with his days of struggle with the game when the Thailand star won the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026 on Sunday by two shots.
The 26-year-old started the final round leading by two shots after a magnificent eight-under-par 64 round on Saturday and managed to end it with the same margin on top of the leaderboard following a battling two-under 70.
Tanapat left a good-looking birdie putt inches short of the cup on the 18th hole, but the par was good enough as none of his nearest rivals could make a move.
Runchanapong Youprayong (70) started three shots behind Tanapat and finished third at -14, while Bangladesh’s Siddikur Rahman jumped ahead of him with a birdie on the last hole in his 67.
That birdie on the 18th proved crucial because it sealed Rahman’s place in next week’s US$500,000 am green Bharat Classic, an Asian Tour event at the same Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort venue.
American Henry Chung (67) was in solo fourth place at -13, with the Hong Kong duo of Matthew Cheung (69) and Hoho Yue (70).
Tanapat Pichaikool of Thailand. Picture courtesy: IGPL
The last time Tanapat won was on his 25th birthday in November 2024, when he clinched the Toyota Tour Championship. Even though he held the sole lead throughout the final day, he said it wasn’t easy to get over the line.
Tanapat narrowly missed out on a full card on the Asian Tour last year when he finished 69th in the Order of Merit, as he struggled with his swing, but feels he is close to playing his best golf now.
“I was nervous. For the past five hours, it was all up and down. Golf isn’t that easy when you come down to the last couple of holes trying to win a tournament. You know others want to sneak up and shoot five or six under. I knew I just had to stay in the moment,” said Tanapat.
“Lots of changes in the last 18 months. I just kept believing that the choices I made were good choices.
“Swing-wise, I worked a lot on my downswing. I’ve been doing quite a bit of work for the past two months, and I wasn’t getting the result I wanted. And then, all of a sudden this week, all the things are working.
“I switched the driver shaft (to Mitsubishi Tensei Blue 6X on his PING G440 LST) and I think that’s a fantastic decision I made last week. I changed it probably three days before I flew here. It’s new, but it just clicked. I just saw a couple drive which were straight and all of a sudden, it was just robotic.”
Siddikur Rahman of Bangladesh. Picture by Jason Butler/Asian Tour
Tanapat added that he was very excited about next week’s Asian Tour event.
“Excited, very excited indeed. It’s on the same course, and I feel I know it inside out. I will just try to play the same golf as I did this week, and hopefully, the result is the same again,” he added.
Rahman may have fallen short by a couple of shots, but he still had the smile of a winner after finishing solo second. The 41-year-old Bangladeshi legend, winner of two Asian Tour titles, is in Morocco with his family and will now have to change his air tickets after gaining an entry into next week’s event.
“Honestly, I really enjoyed myself this week. My family is with me, so I really enjoyed my work without any expectation. I thought I would not get into the next two tournaments because I was so down on the waiting list, I had to change my tickets,” said the 2013 Indian Open champion, who lost his Asian Tour card last year after finishing 94th in the Order of Merit.
“I did not expect much and spent the time taking my baby to the swimming pool and the sea. I think it was the experience of playing without much expectation. So, yes, it was really very important to me to play well this week, and I am happy that I get into the next week.”
Runchanapong Youprayong of Thailand. Picture By Ian Walton/Asian Tour
Runchanapong was eyeing that spot, which eventually went to Rahman, and he would rue the finish as he could not convert a single birdie after making three in his first eight holes and getting to within one shot of Tanapat. He then made a bogey on the 10th hole and finished with eight straight pars.
“I felt like I handled myself well out there. I gave myself a lot of chances, but the putter kind of went cold on the back nine. My distance control also felt a bit off with the wind, but it was a great experience overall to be in the last group and be in contention,” said Runchanapong, who improved to third place in the Order of Merit, one ahead of Tanapat.
“I am just trying to take it one tournament at a time. I have finished 12th on the ADT Order of Merit two times (2023 and 2024). That definitely stings a little bit and I’m just trying to improve that.
“I’m just gonna stick around another week, and hopefully, I can sneak in somehow. Let’s see if there are any withdrawals next week so that I get to play because I love this golf course.”
Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, built on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic, a US$500,000 tournament on the Asian Tour. That will be followed by the US$2 million International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco. The next ADT event is the US$100,000 DigiPlus Philippine ADT Open from June 17th to 20th.
May 30: Thailand’s Tanapat Pichaikool shot a solid eight-under-par 64 to gain a two-shot advantage going into the final round of the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026.
Pichaikool made an early eagle on the par-5 third hole on a windy Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort course, but immediately dropped a shot on the next hole. That was his only mistake as he added seven more birdies after that to reach 15-under par 201 total, two ahead of Argentina’s Franco Scorzato, who shot a bogey-free 67.
Another Thai star, Runchanapong Youprayong, shot a second 67 of the week to reach 12-under and was in solo third place.
American Carson Herron, son of four-time PGA Tour winner Tim, showed his golfing pedigree and shot the lowest round of the tournament. With nine birdies in his bogey-free 63, Herron jumped up 32 places to tied fourth alongside overnight leader Agusti Quinquilla Madalena of Spain (73) and Italy’s Michele Ortolani (66).
Carson Herron of the United States. Picture courtesy: IGPL
The tournament is the fifth leg of the Asian Development Tour (ADT) and is co-sanctioned with the Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL). Among the IGPL players in the field, Syed Saqib Ahmed (70) was the leading contender at seven-under and in tied 14th position.
The 26-year-old Tanapat finished tied sixth in a PGT of India Tour event earlier this year – his only top-10 finish of the season – and is now hoping to get his third ADT win in a tournament that is co-sanctioned by another Indian body – the IGPL.
Having narrowly missed out on a full card on the Asian Tour last year when he finished 69th in the Order of Merit, Tanapat is looking to bounce back to the form of 2024 when he won the Toyota Tour Championship in Malaysia. He has won thrice on the All Thailand Golf Tour since then.
“It was a great round. It was a bit up and down, but I got some good breaks. The game was a bit off for the next few holes and I picked it up with a birdie on the seventh hole and managed to keep up the momentum until the end of the round,” said Tanapat, who finished second to Itthipat Buranatanyarat in the 2024 ADT Order of Merit.
“The last few months have been a lot of swing changes, and a lot of equipment changes as well. That’s why I did not get good results, but I’ve been patient through all those times for this to come. So hopefully, I can keep this going tomorrow.
“I feel that I have been executing pretty well for the past three days, so hopefully tomorrow I can execute the same things. Let’s see what happens.”
Franco Scorzato of Argentina. Picture courtesy: IGPL
Rookie Scorzato, who has not finished outside the top-23 in his last three ADT starts, will try and seal his best finish on the Tour. His previous best was a tied 8th at the Nam A Bank Vietnam Masters.
The 23-year-old made the turn in three-under with three birdies, and then kept bogeys away on the back nine with two more birdies.
“Today was a good round with no bogeys, which is always great. I hit almost every shot from the fairway, giving myself good birdie opportunities. There wasn’t much more to it than that; it was a very clean round, to be honest,” said Scorzato.
“I’m very happy to be in the last group. I think that reflects how well this week has gone, but at the same time, it doesn’t change anything about golf, and my mindset has to stay the same. I have to stay focused and committed to every shot, which is something I think I’ve been doing very well.”
The 23-year-old Herron has missed every cut in Official World Golf Ranking-recognised events this year, but Saturday was a walk in the park after making it to his first weekend of the season.
“I started in the back nine and I was able to put together a bunch of good shots and make a lot of putts. I kind of cooled down a little bit on the front nine. I kept trying to keep the pedal down, and that’s what I want to do tomorrow and just see what I can do.
“I started the week kind of slow, but I started hitting the ball better than I was in my last few tournaments. So, I kind of found something that clicked. I was just trying to hit some good wedge shots and just do well to square the clubs, and just piece it together.”
This week is the fifth stop of the 2026 season on the ADT. Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, built on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic. The International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco, will bring the exciting North African adventure to a conclusion in three weeks.
May 29: Spain’s Agusti Quinquilla Madalena shot the lowest round of the tournament so far to take a four-shot lead at the halfway stage of the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026.
On Friday at the stunning Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, the 25-year-old Madalena took full advantage of the softer morning conditions. His bogey-free round had eight birdies, and it could have been even better but for a missed eagle putt from six feet on the 18th hole.
The eight-under par 64, added to his 68 in the opening round, took him to 12-under par going into the weekend rounds. He was four ahead of the Hong Kong duo of overnight leader Hoho Yue (70) and Matthew Cheung (68), and Argentina’s Franco Scorzato (68).
Thailand’s Tanapat Pichaikool (67) and Runchanapong Youprayong (70) were also in the hunt, tied fifth at seven-under, where they were joined by Indian teenager Kartik Singh (66).
The fifth leg of the Asian Development Tour event is co-sanctioned with the Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL). Among the IGPL players in the field, Raghav Chugh and Syed Saqib Ahmed (both 70) were leading contenders at five-under and in tied 12th position, while the leading Moroccan player was Ayoub Id-Omar (68) in tied eighth place.
Agusti hasn’t had a single top-10 finish in Official World Golf Ranking events in his five years of playing as a pro, but that could all change after a flawless round of 64.
Hoho Yue of Hong Kong. Picture courtesy: IGPL
The Spaniard was two-under after nine holes, but had a brilliant stretch of three holes from the 10th onwards. He hit his second shot to tap-in distances on both 10th and 11th holes and then converted a 15-feet birdie putt on the 12th hole to get to five-under par for the day.
He then birdied the 14th and 16th, before his only ‘mistake’ of the day of not converting the eagle putt on the 18th hole.
“That was really good, I think the best golf I have ever played. No mistakes, just a perfect round. I made some good putts, very happy. I struggled to make par on the 17th hole, but it was a good two putt from a very long distance before I missed from about two meter for eagle on the 18th.
“I like the golf course. I think my playing style has adapted to this course layout very well.
“I will try to play the same over the weekend, but maybe, I will not be able to score this well. But I’m feeling good on the golf course, so I am hoping I can keep playing like this.”
“Honestly, I found the course was playing a little easier today. I had the first tee time of the day, so the wind wasn’t too strong, but I didn’t have the best day,” said the 26-year-old.
“I knew it was not going to be as smooth as yesterday. I had to make some adjustments, stay patient, and kind of recover from a rocky start. I felt like nothing was really going my way in the front nine. But I got to give credit to myself for being patient with my game and just let the putts drop.
“I’m pretty happy. It’s definitely not the best ball-striking round of the week, probably, but I’m glad about the score.”
Cheung finished tied second at the Taiwan Glass Taifong Open earlier this month and continued his good form from there.
“It feels good. The weather’s been beautiful for me. It was quite calm this morning, so we had some good scoring conditions and I played very consistent. Very happy over the last two days,” said Cheung.
“It’s a great golf course. I like it a lot. It gives you enough space off the tees, but you must hit good shots, because if you lose your golf ball into any cactus, you’re just praying out there. So I’ve been hitting a good off the tee, and hopefully I can continue in the same vein over the weekend.
“I actually switched to a broomstick putter the week before Taiwan. I putted it well there, and I’m putting pretty good here. So, I guess it’s working.”
This week is the fifth stop of the 2026 season on the ADT. Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, built on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic. The International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco, will bring the exciting North African adventure to a conclusion in three weeks.
May 28: Hoho Yue made a birdie on his final hole to edge ahead by one shot in the US$160,000 am green IGPL Morocco Rising Stars 2026, which is being played at the stunning Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort and is co-sanctioned with the Indian Golf Premier League (IGPL).
In Thursday’s opening round, the Hong Kong player made a sensational eagle on the par-5 seventh hole – where his second shot from 260 yards lipped out for an albatross – and six birdies to finish on six-under par 66.
One behind Hoho at five-under par were American Nathan Han and Thailand’s Runchanapong Youprayong. An eclectic group of four players – Sven Maurits of the Netherlands, Argentina’s Franco Scorzato, Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung and Spaniard Agusti Quinquilla Madalena – were tied for fourth place at 68.
India’s Raghav Chugh, Syed Saqib Ahmed, Trishul Chinnappa and Sudhir Sharma were the best placed among the IGPL players at three-under 69, while Ayoub Id-Omar was the best among the local Moroccan players, tied 17th at two-under 70.
Yue, 26, played for the University of Oregon while pursuing college in the US. He had five top-10 finishes in different tours, including the Egyptian Open on the ADT, last year, and is looking to get his first win as a professional.
Playing in the afternoon session when the wind picked up compared to the morning tee times, Yue started with a birdie but quickly gave up the gain on the very next hole.
“It was good. It was a long day, and I knew the golf course was going to play hard. I woke up this morning, and I could feel the wind walking out. I knew it was going to be a grind and I had zero expectations. I knew I was just trying to go out there and stay as present as I could, which I did very well,” said Hoho.
Nathan Han of the United States. Picture courtesy: IGPL
“I started off the day with some fears. I was like, ‘Oh, the wind’s blowing in a tougher direction. The course is playing a lot tougher than it played during the practice rounds’. But I knew it would take a bit of momentum and a couple of good shots to get it going. Fortunately. I got hot pretty early, so I just felt like I had nothing to lose. I just had to pedal down the whole day.”
On the eagle on the seventh hole, he added: “Oh yeah, that was pretty sick. My whole group was pretty surprised to see that. The wind was blowing left to right very strong, and I just hit it a left, let the wind take it, and it was my day. The ball ended up lipping out from 260 yards and I made the five-feet putt.”
American Han, who is playing only his second recognised professional tournament, got off to a blistering start. The 25-year-old from New York, who played for Pepperdine University in NCAA Division I competition until last season, showed his class after getting fast off the block with six birdies in his first eight holes. He then ran into trouble on the 18th hole to make a double bogey seven on the par-5 hole, completely against the run of play. He was solid on his back nine for two birdies and a solitary bogey to finish on five-under-par 67.
“I started at 8:05am and I was feeling good, the body was feeling good. I didn’t do anything special, just stuck to my game plan. I hit drives the way I wanted it to, hit some good iron shots, and made a lot of putts,” said Han
“I was six-under through eight, but unfortunately doubled the 18th, my ninth hole of the day. I hit it into the ice plants and would advise that never hit it out of the ice plants if you’re in there. But I did not falter after that, and I just kept the momentum going. I’m happy with how I finished.”
Runchanapong Youprayong of Thailand. Picture courtesy: IGPL
Runchanapong, who finished second in the opening event of the schedule and is currently fourth in the ADT Order of Merit, was solid through the day, except for a solitary bogey on the par-5 14th hole, which was his fifth hole of the round having started from the 10th tee.
“I started off well until I made a bogey on the par five, and then kind of picked myself up again and made a few more birdies. I just hung tight into the round with all the wind going on, but overall it was solid,” said the Thai star.
“It’s fun playing in a place like this. Every time I make a good swing or a bad shot, I can still look out at the views and see the ocean and stuff. It’s very beautiful out here.”
This week is the fifth stop of the 2026 season on the ADT. Mazagan Beach & Golf Resort, on Morocco’s Atlantic coast, will also host next week’s am green IGPL Bharath Classic. The International Series Morocco presented by Visit Morocco, will bring the exciting North African adventure to a conclusion in three weeks.
November 7: India’s Karandeep Kochhar won his maiden title on the Asian Development Tour and virtually assured his return to the Asian Tour after an assured three-shot win in the US$125,000 Egypt Golf Series – Red Sea Open.
At Sokhna Golf Club on Friday, Kochhar closed with a two-under par 70, which took him to 19-under par for the tournament, and three clear of England’s Matt Killen (67).
The win, and the cheque of US$21,875 takes Kochhar to No4 on the ADT Order of Merit, while Killen closed the gap on top with leader Tawit Polthai of Thailand. With just one tournament remaining on the schedule, Killen is approximately US$12,100 behind and would need a big finish at the Aramco Invitational Tournament, scheduled for November 26-29.
Thailand’s Weerawish Narkprachar (71) was solo third at 15-under, while Scotland’s Eric McIntosh (65) made a big jump to fourth place at -14 with the lowest round of the day.
Darcy Brereton (69), Carl Jano Corpus (69), Italy’s Andrea Saracino (70) and Sweden’s Calle Strandberg (72) were tied for fifth place at -12. Korea’s Minhyeok Yang (72) and Laos’ Thammasack Bouahom (76) rounded up the top-10 with tied ninth place.
Matt Killen of England. Picture by Graham Uden / Asian Tour.
Kochhar started the final round with a two-shot lead, but that vanished in the first three holes when he made two bogeys and Weerawish caught up with him with a birdie on the third. The Thai was in the mix until late in the back nine, where he bogied the 15th and 16th holes.
The 26-year-old Kochhar, who last won on the domestic PGTI Tour three years and eight months ago, steadied the ship with birdies on the fifth, seventh and eighth holes, and never looked back despite a determined charge from Killen.
“Feels great. Obviously, it has not sunken in yet, as it is almost four years since my last win. But this feels so good because I came here with just one goal, and that was to secure my Asian Tour card. I sacrificed a lot for that, and I think I have pretty much achieved my goal,” said Kochhar.
“Bogey-par-bogey was a tough start. I wasn’t really feeling the game was a little nervous to start with, but I think I pulled myself back well after that. The good thing was that I was not panicking after that start. I knew that I was playing well, and it was just a matter of being in the moment and being patient.
“I thought the birdie on the eighth hole was the one that turned everything around. I hit two good shots to the par-5 hole, and was just short of the green, from where I made a poor chip. But I made a very good 10-footer there, and that kind of told me it could be my day.”
Eric McIntosh of Scotland. Picture by Paul Lakatos/IMG.
Killen got to five-under par through 14 holes, but could not put the pressure on Kochhar over the closing holes.
“I am a little disappointed I didn’t make a couple more today. I’ve hit the ball pretty well all week, to be honest. I just did not hold as many putts as I would like,” said the Englishman, winner of the Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament on ADT in August.
“Obviously, it’s all coming down to the last event anyway, but the main goal was to just get as close to Tawit as I could. Kind of claw back as much as I could. I’ve got to play good at Aramco regardless. I have done well there in the past with a couple of top-10s.
“This whole year on the ADT was a good learning experience. I’m very happy my game is in a better place now when I go back to the Asian Tour. So, I’m looking forward to playing there next year.”
McIntosh started the day at seven-under and 10 behind the leader. A win would have been difficult from there, but he did a great job at climbing up the leaderboard and clinching his best finish of the season on the ADT.
“I got a pretty steady start the first two holes, and then holed a good putt on the third from about six feet for birdie, and then went on a wee run from there,” said the 26-year-old from Edinburgh, who graduated from Chicago’s Northwestern University.
“Had a bad bogey on 16, and then a good birdie at the last. It’s always nice to birdie the last, especially after I three-putted there yesterday from not very far. So a bit of redemption there.
“My big goal this week was just to be double digits under par and then see where that puts me. I did that, which was pleasing. Now, I have a great opportunity at the Aramco. The top two people pretty much secure the cards, so, this helps me go up the Order of Merit. The ADT has been very good, but to be able to have a chance to play the Asian Tour, that’s a great opportunity.
The Egypt Golf Series – Red Sea Open was the second successive week the Asian Development Tour was in the country, following the Egyptian Open. The final tournament of the 2025 schedule is the Aramco Invitational Tournament from November 26-29.
November 6: India’s Karandeep Kochhar is playing for the 13th week in the last 14, but showed no signs of weariness as he shot the lowest round for the second successive day and opened a two-shot lead after Thursday’s third round of the US$125,000 Egypt Golf Series – Red Sea Open.
At Sokhna Golf Club, Kochhar, who also made a first competitive hole-in-one in the opening round, added a seven-under par 65 to move to 17-under total.
Chasing Kochhar, as well as history, was Laos’ Thammasack Bouahom (67), as he will try and become the first player from his country to win an international professional title.
Thailand’s Weerawish Narkprachar shot his second successive round of 67 to move to solo third place at 14-under, while Sweden’s Calle Strandberg (71), the overnight leader, slipped to fourth place at 204 total.
Three players – Pakistan’s Aadam Syed (66), England’s Matt Killen (66) and Korea’s Minhyeok Yang (69) – were tied fifth at 11-under.
The 26-year-old Kochhar has three wins on the domestic PGTI Tour, but is yet to record his first win in an international tournament. That can all change after Friday’s final round as he continued to make plenty of birdies on the golf course with his naturally aggressive style of golf.
Weerawish Narkprachar of Thailand. Picture by ADT
“Obviously, a great day for me today, seven-under par. Just again, I had the same mindset as yesterday, which was to stay aggressive throughout, try and give myself as many chances as possible. As I said yesterday, it’s not easy to hold putts as the greens become quite bumpy towards afternoon,” said Kochhar, who made eight birdies and a solitary bogey on the par-four 12th hole.
“That’s what I did. I did a great job of staying in the moment and not getting too ahead of myself. A two-shot lead is nice, but still a lot of work to do over 18 holes. Just want to have the same attitude that I have had the last three days, and continue to play well.
“The key has been to make stress-free pars because it can get a bit gusty here. My irons have been good, and my driver has also been good. That just decreases the amount of pressure that I have when I get to the putting green. Hopefully, I can do all that tomorrow as well.
“A win would be very special. I have made a conscious decision to skip a few Asian Tour events and play on the ADT, because I want to graduate and get back my card on the main Tour.”
Thammasack, who is the only professional golfer from Laos apart from his twin brother Thammalack, has previously finished third three times on the ADT in the past two years.
On Thursday, he was meandering along at one-under after 10 holes, but caught fire after that as he made a birdie on the 11th, and then three in a row from the 13th to the 15th holes.
“I am already feeling nervous and excited about tomorrow,” said Thammasack, who turned 28 in August. “I can’t wait to get out of there tomorrow.
“Today was a bit up and down. Made a lot of birdies, putted well, but made a couple of mistakes around the greens.
“The three straight birdies on the back nine got me going. Started with the par-five, where I got quite lucky with the drive. It didn’t go in the water. Hit a great second shot and a really good chip shot for a tap-in birdie, and had a tap-in birdie on the 14th as well as I nearly holed my second shot for an eagle.”
The US$125,000 Egypt Golf Series – Red Sea Open is the second successive week the Asian Development Tour is in Egypt after last week’s Egyptian Open.
November 5: Calle Strandberg managed to keep his overnight lead on one shot intact at the halfway stage of the US$125,000 Egypt Golf Series – Red Sea Open, adding a five-under par 67 to his 66 on Tuesday.
At Sokhna Golf Club, Strandberg, who is looking for his first win as a professional, tallied 11-under 133 for the 36 holes, one better than India’s Karandeep Kochhar (66), who shot the low round of the day, and Laos’ Thammasack Bouahom, who added a second consecutive round of 67.
Thailand’s Weerawish Narkprachar (67) was in solo fourth place at 135, followed by Korea’s Minhyeok Yang (68) at -8. Russia’s Egor Eroshenko (69), Sweden’s Erik Jonasson (68) and Italy’s Andrea Saracino (69) were tied sixth at 137.
Strandberg made seven birdies – one more than in his opening round – but he also made two bogeys compared to his bogey-free effort on Tuesday.
“It was a good round. Had two three-putts for bogeys, but I had seven birdies as well. The game was almost similar to yesterday, except for the two three-putts. I changed my driver for the day, but it’s still not the best. It’s getting there. It’s good to have some margins out here on the course as the fairways is pretty wide,” said the Swede, who is a regular on the Nordic Golf League.
Karandeep Kochhar of India. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
Kochhar had finished his round on a high with a hole-in-one yesterday, but it was a different emotion on Wednesday after making his only bogey of the day on the 18th hole.
“I think that was pretty solid, except the end when I made my only bogey of the day on the last hole, which was a bit of a sour way to finish. But that’s fine. I had good shots, but just got a bit unlucky there,” said Kochhar, who is hoping to improve from his 20th place on the Asian Development Tour Order of Merit and get in contention for one of 10 Asian Tour cards on offer to the top-10 players.
“I hit the ball well and was aggressive. There wasn’t much wind today, but on this golf course, it’s important to keep giving yourself chances, because it’s hard to make putts here.
“When I got to seven-under, I knew I was close to the lead, but I didn’t really think about it at any point. I just continued to play my own game. I think the hardest thing in golf is to stay out of your own way, and I thought I did that very well.”
Thammasack, who has his father on his bag this week, is hoping to win his first title as a professional and did not harm his chances with another solid round.
“Started really well and made three straight birdies. I holed a lot of putts today. So, definitely putted a lot better than it did yesterday, and hit a lot of greens,” said Thammasack.
“I think the key thing on these greens is to just have good emotional control, because you are going to miss a lot of putts on these greens. You need to be able to move on to the next one.
The US$125,000 Egypt Golf Series – Red Sea Open is the second successive week the Asian Development Tour is in Egypt after last week’s Egyptian Open.
November 4: Sweden’s Calle Strandberg, a regular on the Nordic Golf League, put himself in pole position with a bogey-free opening round of six-under par 66 in the opening round of the US$125,000 Egypt Golf Series – Read Sea Open.
At Sokhna Golf Club, Strandberg started his campaign with a round that contained four birdies and an eagle on the par-five eighth hole to open a one-shot advantage over Thammasack Bouahom of Laos. Thammasack also enjoyed a bogey-free outing with five birdies.
India’s Karandeep Kochhar closed his round with a hole-in-one on the ninth hole to finish on four-under 68 and tied third place, where he was joined by Korea’s Minhyeok Yang, the Italian duo of Andrea Saracino and Luca Galliano, England’s Matt Killen, Russia’s Egor Eroshenko and Thailand’s Weerawish Narkprachar.
Adam Elshamy, the 22-year-old amateur from Egypt, was the best-placed among local players, coming in with a bogey-free 69 to finish on tied 10th place.
Karandeep Kochhar of India. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.
“That’s a good round. Everything was solid. Didn’t have any mistakes after hitting almost every green. Think I just missed two,” said Strandberg, who has several top-10 finishes in the NGL, but his best finish on the Asian Development Tour is a tied 11th place at the 2023 Saudi Aramco Invitational.
“The driver felt a bit off, but putting was pretty solid even though the greens were a bit slow. But overall, it was a very solid round.”
The eagle on the eighth hole came after he decided to tee off with a three-wood to stay short of the fairway bunker, and then smashed a four-iron to 15 feet and made the putt.
“The eagle was nice, but so was the birdie on the 18th, where I hit my second shot to like three feet. It’s always nice to finish a good round with a birdie,” Strandberg added.
Thammasack said it was a stress-free 67 despite making two three-putt pars.
Matt Killen of England. Picture by Vachira Kalong/Asian Tour
“Strength today was tee to green. Hit 16 greens today, so it wasn’t too stressful. But putting today was quite average. There were a couple of three putts, but we’re not going to let that get in the way of a good round,” said the Laos player, who is currently 86th in the ADT Order of Merit and needs a strong finish to the season.
“So, you have just got to accept that sometimes you hit a good putt and it just won’t go in. But I hit it solid tee-to-green and hit it close on a lot of holes.”
Elshamy, who shot rounds of 77 and 70 in last week’s Egyptian Open, continued to move in the right direction with a 69, which included birdies on the 13th, 17th and 18th holes.
“It’s always a good day when you have a clean scorecard,” said the 22-year-old who is playing on a professional tour for only the second time.
“I knew I wasn’t hitting the ball very well, so I planned accordingly. My short game was incredible. Made a few good up and downs and kept the momentum going.
“It’s a reflection of the state of Egyptian golf that it has drawn attention from a renowned tour like the ADT. This is so good for our players. I look forward to the tournaments to come in the coming years, many more years. The players are very happy.”
Just a couple of days ago, Kochhar told his fiancée Pranavi Urs, who plays on the Ladies European Tour, that he felt like a hole-in-one was coming.
“I think I manifested it. It’s my third hole-in-one, but this feels special because it’s the first time I have made one in tournament play. Always great to finish a round that way,” said Kochhar, who hit a six-iron from 194 yards for the ace.
The US$125,000 Egypt Golf Series – Red Sea Open is the second successive week the Asian Development Tour is in Egypt after last week’s Egyptian Open.
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