Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, September 11: Frenchman Erwan Vieilledent opened up a two-shot lead at the PGM Sabah Asian Development Tour (ADT) Championship after he shot a commendable six-under-par 66 on Wednesday.

Vieilledent is trailed closely by a chasing pack that includes recent ADT winner Joohyung Kim of Korea, Fiji’s Sam Lee, Swedish Oscar Zetterwall and Malaysian U-Minn Woon, who all shot 68.

Erwan’s round was highlighted by an eagle on the par-five sixth hole, which he described “helped greatly” under sweltering conditions at the Sabah Golf and Country Club.

“I had some good shots on the fairways. That eagle and a couple of birdies (six) helped greatly too. It was challenging out there, especially with the heat. The greens are also firm which makes it a bit more difficult, but overall I’m pleased with my round today,” said Vieilledent.

Vieilledent will be hoping to rekindle some of the form which earned him a career best finish in the east of Malaysia four years ago.

The world number 2066 had finished second at the Sarawak Championship in 2015 which propelled him to a top-900 rank.

But Vieilledent has a long journey ahead of him, especially with Kim chasing a back-to-back title after lifting the Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament last month.

Kim had a bogey-free round that included two birdies on the second and 15^th holes, as well as a closing eagle on 18^th.

Another good performance in Sabah will edge him closer to his hopes of topping the Order of Merit at the end of the season.

“The main goal is to finish high on the Merit list, but first I must continue to produce the goods. Today was a good day as I was hitting well from the fairways to the greens,” said Kim.

“My stroke game was also good, and it needs to be on a course like this where the greens are firm. I did well with my irons and am hoping for the same tomorrow. Of course, the lower the score the better.”

Kim is currently second behind Japan’s Naoki Sekita on the Order of Merit, thanks to a current haul of US$41,228.

Further down the leaderboard, defending champion Ben Leong sits tied-seventh after he managed a 71.

2017 ADT Order of Merit winner Pannakorn Uthaipas and Sekito meanwhile are four shots off the pace after returning with matching 72s.

The PGM Sabah ADT Championship offers a total prize purse of RM225,000.

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Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, September 10:  Malaysia’s rising star Shahriffudin Ariffin is supremely confident of ending his country’s barren title run in the 2019 Asian Development Tour (ADT) season when he competes at the PGM Sabah ADT Championship (September 11-14) which starts on Wednesday.

After 12 events this year, there is yet to be a Malaysian winner but young Shahriffudin has been going great guns with two top-10 finishes in his last four tournaments on the ADT.

The 20-year-old was the best local finisher at the PGM Northport ADT Championship a fortnight ago, and he is looking to take that form to the Sabah Golf and Country Club.

“I am confident of winning this tournament because my form is good at the moment. The last time I won was also around this period, so I am feeling good about my chances,” said Shahriffudin.

“I know the course (Sabah Golf and Country Club) well, having already played there three times.

It is a challenging course that you must be familiar with to thrive in. My goal is to go out there   and make as many birdies as possible.”

Shahriffudin is also the last Malaysian to triumph on the ADT circuit, when he edged Nicholas Fung to win the PGM Labuan Championship 2018.

The world number 663, who won despite playing with a stiff neck, is planning to use the PGM Sabah ADT Championship to take a step closer to his dream of playing at the 2020 Olympics.

“I have been playing in a lot of ADT events to earn world ranking points in hopes of making it to the Tokyo Olympics. I am some way behind to make that cut, but with several victories nothing is impossible,” said the Malaysian.

Shahriffudin is also looking to secure an Asian Tour card by finishing in the top-seven on the Order of Merit. He is currently ranked 19^th on the money list after a season haul of US$8,582.

But he will face resistance from defending champion Ben Leong, who has two top-10 finishes in as many ADT appearances this year.

Should Shahriffudin or Ben triumph, they will continue Malaysia’s legacy of always having at least one winner since the ADT inception in 2010.

Current Order of Merit leader Naoki Sekito of Japan will also aim to extend his lead on the money list when he tees off on Wednesday.

Korea’s Joohyung Kim, who clinched the Chiputra Golfpreneur Tournament on August 24, will also be aiming to seal back-to-back victories on the circuit.

Kimis right behind Naoki on the Order of Merit, with US$41,228 to his name on the money list.

Thailand’s Pannakorn Uthaipas and Singapore’s Quincy Quek are among the other notable names competing at the PGM Sabah ADT Championship which offers a total prize purse of RM225,000.

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