Big-hitting Kiradech widens lead at the Richard Mille Brunei Championships
Bandar Seri Begawan, March 9: Thai star Kiradech Aphibarnrat continued his sensational run of form with a flawless seven-under-par 64, extending his overnight lead to six following the penultimate round of the Richard Mille Brunei Championships on Friday.
The 28-year-old Thai, who started the round with a three-shot advantage, returned with a bogey-free round highlighted by seven birdies to stay atop the leaderboard on 20-under-par 193 total at the Empire Hotel and Country Club.
His playing partner and compatriot Itthipat Buranatanyarat signed for a 67 to sit in second place while Singapore’s Quincy Quek (64) and American John Catlin(69) settled nine shots off the pace in third on 202 at the US$60,000 Asian Development Tour (ADT) event.
Kiradech, a three-time winner on the Asian Tour and a double winner on the region’s secondary circuit, hopes to boost his world ranking and edge towards his goal of breaking into top-30 with a victory this week.
He attained a career-high 36th position on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) following a tied-fifth finish at the World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship last week.
“I think my ultimate goal is to be in the top-30. I have been inside the top-50 many times. And my current position of 36th is my best ranking. I just want to build up more confidence with a win tomorrow and prepare myself for a couple of big events coming up in the States.
“I played with a great group. I played with John (Catlin) before in Thailand last year and he’s such a nice guy. He’s based in Thailand too so I taught him a couple of Thai words. It was really fun playing with John and Itthipat,” said Kiradech, Asian Tour’s number one in 2013.
“I am having a lovely time in Brunei so far. There were so many fans out here watching me which was very unexpected. I haven’t had the time to do anything fun as I have been busy trying to recover from my jetlag but I think tonight I will spend it with my friends in Brunei and then head into the final round recharged,” added Kiradech.
Itthipat, chasing for a third ADT win, overcame early nerves of playing alongside good friend and world number 36 Kiradech by extending his bogey-free streak to 36 holes.
“Kiradech is my close friend but I was still pretty nervous playing with him today because I know he is world number 36. I got over my nerves after the first couple of holes. My caddy helped me a lot today.
“He told me to just play against the golf course and not against Kiradech and that helped me to focus. I made about seven up-and-downs today from fifty yards. On the last hole, I made a good up-and-down from 70 yards for par. I wasn’t hitting it well but my wedges were very accurate,” added the 24-year-old Itthipat, who fired four birdies for his commendable 67.
Quek, a one-time winner on the ADT but not since 2012, rode on a hot putter to mark his week’s best efforts so far with a 64.
“My putts were dropping today which really helped. I think that has always been the case with my game. I just need to get the putts dropping and then ride on that momentum from hole to hole.
“I didn’t put myself into a position where I was struggling to save par. I would be very happy to play with Kiradech and I think it would be interesting to see how he gets around this golf course and learn a trick of two from him,” said Quek.
The winner of the Richard Mille Brunei Championships will take home a prize purse of US$10,500. The leading five players on the ADT Order of Merit at the end of the season will earn playing rights on the Asian Tour in 2019.
For more information on the ADT, please visit www.asiandevelopmenttour.com.
Leading third round scores:
193 – Kiradech APHIBARNRAT (THA) 65 64 64
199 – Itthipat BURANATANYARAT (THA) 68 64 67
202 – Quincy QUEK (SGP) 71 67 64, John CATLIN (USA) 66 67 69
203 – Joshua Andrew WIRAWAN (INA) 70 68 65, Shohei HASEGAWA (JPN) 69 67 67
204 – Nitithorn THIPPONG (THA) 68 69 67
205 – Sattaya SUPUPRAMAI (THA) 68 70 67, Malcolm KOKOCINSKI (SWE) 71 70 64, Lee SONG (KOR) 67 67 71
206 – Shinichi MIZUNO (JPN) 68 68 70, Danny MASRIN (INA) 65 70 71
207 – Mathiam KEYSER (RSA) 71 68 68, Nattawat SUVAJANAKORN (THA) 70 69 68, Thanpisit OMSIN (THA) 67 72 68, Johnson POH (SGP) 71 69 67, Kasidit LEPKURTE (THA) 70 67 70, Steve LEWTON (ENG) 67 68 72, Masahiro KAWAMURA (JPN) 66 68 73
208 – Erwan VIEILLEDENT (FRA) 66 69 73
Ends.
About Asian Development Tour
The Asian Development Tour was launched in 2010 with the aim of creating a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia. Sanctioned by the Asian Tour, the Asian Development Tour will ultimately create a new playing platform for emerging stars from across Asia and around the world. Through the Asian Tour Qualifying School, players will qualify for the Asian Development Tour and enjoy the opportunity to hone their games and talent through a secondary circuit in Asia. Designed in the same structure as the Web.com Tour in America and European Challenge Tour, the Asian Development Tour is a stepping stone to the Asian Tour and the exciting world of international golf. The Asian Development Tour has been structured to ensure the best opportunities for its members. The leading five players on the Asian Development Tour will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season, ensuring a proper career pathway for aspiring professionals. All ADT events receive Official World Golf Ranking points.
Bandar Seri Begawan, March 10: Thai star Kiradech Aphibarnrat cruised to a six-shot victory by firing a final round of three-under-par 68 at the US$60,000 Richard Mille Brunei Championships on Saturday.
The world number 36 dominated the inaugural event where he completed a stunning wire-to-wire victory to clinch his third Asian Development Tour (ADT) title at the picturesque Empire Hotel and Country Club.
Kiradech ended his campaign on 23-under-par 261 to win by six shots over John Catlin of the United States, who returned with a superb 65 to finish in second place.
The 28-year-old Kiradech got off to a solid start by making the turn in 34 before adding three birdies against two bogeys on his homeward nine to claim his second title in 2018 following his victory at the ISPS HANDA World Super 6 Perth last month.
“On the back nine I lost my concentration a little bit. My target was to try and beat the course record of 61 and I was thinking too much. My putts were not dropping in the first five holes on the back nine. Hole 12 was a bad hole for me, where I hit a bad drive to the right and had to chip it out and then didn’t save par,” said Kiradech.
“Everyone was surprised when I took my driver out on hole 15 because it should just be a three-iron off the tee, but I had nothing to lose and I had a seven-stroke lead so I just wanted to change it up and I made a birdie on that hole.
A huge crowd gathered to watch the popular Thai march to victory. “It surprised me that so many people came out to watch despite the hot and humid weather. It feels fantastic to win again, I didn’t have too much pressure on me today, I was just enjoying my round and playing my own game,” said Kiradech.
“The level of competition on the ADT has definitely improved from what I have seen. I just had a really good week which explains the big gap. But there’s so many top players behind me and I really believe that the ADT gives all these up and coming golfers the opportunity to make it to the bigger tour and I hope to see these guys up there soon.”
With two wins over two months, Kiradech will be heading back to the U.S. next week to play in the WGC-Dell Technologies Match play event before heading to the Masters.
“I wanted to use this to gain confidence before I head back. I have been playing great golf over the last four weeks. I am hitting it well and my mind is in the right place so I am going back to the U.S. in great form,” he added.
Catlin, a two-time ADT winner, gave his best to mount a title charge as he returned with a 65 highlighted by six birdies on his flawless scorecard. Itthipat Buranatanyarat of Thailand took third place following a 71 while Indonesia’s Danny Masrin shared fourth with Singapore’s Quincy Quek on 271s.
“I had so many lip-outs today it could have been something really special. I hit a couple of shots between five feet and made those and made a 20-footer on hole 15. Kiradech played unbelievable, I knew I didn’t have a chance to catch him so I was just aiming for second place. It’s been a good week and I’m just going to stay on top of my game before my next event in Indonesia.” said Catlin.
Kiradech took home a winner’s cheque of US$ 10,500 and received nine Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points which will bring him closer to his goal of finishing inside the top-30 at the end of 2018.
The leading five players on the final ADT Order of Merit at the end of the season will earn playing rights on the region’s premier Tour for 2019.
For more information on the ADT, please visit www.asiandevelopmenttour.com
Leading final round scores:
261 – Kiradech APHIBARNRAT (THA) 65 64 64 68
267 – John CATLIN (USA) 66 67 69 65
270 – Itthipat BURANATANYARAT (THA) 68 64 67 71
271 – Danny MASRIN (INA) 65 70 71 65, Quincy QUEK (SGP) 71 67 64 69
273 – Miguel CARBALLO (ARG) 70 70 70 63, Nitithorn THIPPONG (THA) 68 69 67 69, Shohei HASEGAWA (JPN) 69 67 67 70, Joshua Andrew WIRAWAN (INA) 70 68 65 70
274 – Masahiro KAWAMURA (JPN) 66 68 73 67, Johnson POH (SGP) 71 69 67 67
275 – Pannakorn UTHAIPAS (THA) 72 70 69 64, Hyukchul SHIN (KOR) 71 70 71 63
276 – Steve LEWTON (ENG) 67 68 72 69, Nattawat SUVAJANAKORN (THA) 70 69 68 69, Mathiam KEYSER (RSA) 71 68 68 69, Malcolm KOKOCINSKI (SWE) 71 70 64 71, Sattaya SUPUPRAMAI (THA) 68 70 67 71
277 – Thanpisit OMSIN (THA) 67 72 68 70
Ends.
About Asian Development Tour
The Asian Development Tour was launched in 2010 with the aim of creating a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia. Sanctioned by the Asian Tour, the Asian Development Tour will ultimately create a new playing platform for emerging stars from across Asia and around the world. Through the Asian Tour Qualifying School, players will qualify for the Asian Development Tour and enjoy the opportunity to hone their games and talent through a secondary circuit in Asia. Designed in the same structure as the Web.com Tour in America and European Challenge Tour, the Asian Development Tour is a stepping stone to the Asian Tour and the exciting world of international golf. The Asian Development Tour has been structured to ensure the best opportunities for its members. The leading five players on the Asian Development Tour will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season, ensuring a proper career pathway for aspiring professionals. All ADT events receive Official World Golf Ranking points.
Bogor, Indonesia, March 15: The Asian Development Tour (ADT) received a welcome boost with the inaugural OB Golf Invitational set to provide the region’s emerging stars with another playing opportunity in Indonesia next week.
The US$70,000 ADT event, which will be the Tour’s first stop in Indonesia this season, is slated to get underway from March 21 to 24 at the highly-rated Gunung Geulis Country Club, located in Bogor, about 50 kilometres from the national capital of Jakarta.
A 144-man field, made up of 80 players from the ADT, 55 players from the PGA Tour of Indonesia and nine invitees, will feature in the tournament, which marks the fourth leg of the ADT schedule this season.
Danny Masrin, highest-ranked Indonesian in 795th position on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), will spearhead the local charge alongside one-time ADT winner George Gandranata.
They will be vying for honours against an international cast from the ADT, which features young Malaysian Shariffuddin Ariffin, South African Mathiam Keyser and American John Catlin, who claimed his breakthrough ADT victory on the same venue two years ago.
Jimmy Masrin, owner of OB Golf, is thrilled to provide players with another playing opportunity which can also improve their world rankings as that will be key to their qualification bid for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.
“The ADT has been a great platform for aspiring golfers to gain playing experiences and to sharpen their skills. I believe this new tournament will provide another great opportunity for players to further excel in the game, especially with the world ranking points on offer.
“A couple of players had qualified for the Olympic Games through playing on the ADT two years ago. With the launch of this tournament, we hope to help more players realise their dreams and represent their countries in the Olympics in 2020,” said Masrin.
Reigning Asian Tour Merit champion Gavin Green of Malaysia and Chinese Taipei’s Lin Wen-tang qualified for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, thanks largely to their exploits on the ADT. Green claimed two wins prior to the cut-off date in July that year while Lin finished inside top-three twice.
Cho Min Thant, Chief Operating Officer, Asian Tour, hailed the launch of the OB Golf Invitational on the ADT, saying it will positively impact the professional golf scene across Indonesia and Asia.
“We are honoured and privileged to welcome the OB Golf Invitational onto the ADT schedule. George Gandranata became the first Indonesian to win on the ADT in 2016 and we hope to see more young and exciting talents bursting into the scene through this new event.
“On behalf of the ADT, I would also like to thank OB Golf and the PGA Tour of Indonesia for their strong commitment and support. I believe we can provide the platform for Indonesian golf to grow and develop through the staging of this event,” said Cho.
The ADT was launched in 2010 as a gateway to the premier Asian Tour. All ADT events are afforded with Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) points. The winner receives a minimum of six points and the leading six players and ties earn points based on a sliding scale.
The top five players on the ADT Order of Merit at the end of the season will earn playing rights on the Asian Tour in 2019. The winner of the OB Golf Invitational will take home a prize purse of US$12,250.
For more information on the ADT, please visit www.asiandevelopmenttour.com.
Ends.
About Asian Development Tour
The Asian Development Tour was launched in 2010 with the aim of creating a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia. Sanctioned by the Asian Tour, the Asian Development Tour will ultimately create a new playing platform for emerging stars from across Asia and around the world. Through the Asian Tour Qualifying School, players will qualify for the Asian Development Tour and enjoy the opportunity to hone their games and talent through a secondary circuit in Asia. Designed in the same structure as the Web.com Tour in America and European Challenge Tour, the Asian Development Tour is a stepping stone to the Asian Tour and the exciting world of international golf. The Asian Development Tour has been structured to ensure the best opportunities for its members. The leading five players on the Asian Development Tour will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season, ensuring a proper career pathway for aspiring professionals. All ADT events receive Official World Golf Ranking points.
Bogor, Indonesia, March 16: American John Catlin will be looking to ride on his soaring confidence when he goes in pursuit for a third Asian Development Tour (ADT) victory at the inaugural OB Golf Invitational next week.
The 27-year-old Catlin, who notched a second straight runner-up finish on the ADT in Brunei last week, hopes to go one better when he takes another aim at glory at the US$70,000 event held at the Gunung Geulis Country Club’s East course.
Having claimed his breakthrough ADT win at the same venue but on the West course in 2016, Catlin is looking to bank on the fond memories of his first victory as he targets another good showing.
Catlin will headline the 144-man field alongside compatriot Blake Snyder, Mathiam Keyser of South Africa, as well as local hopes Danny Masrin and George Gandranata, in the ADT event, which gets underway from March 21 to 24.
“I feel a lot more comfortable playing on the ADT. It was a nice change of pace coming back here. I know my game is there but I still have my doubts when I play against the great players on the Asian Tour sometimes.
“That is something that I am still constantly working on. But coming back to play on the ADT, I believe that I can win again because I have done it before,” said Catlin, who leads the ADT Order of Merit with a current haul of US$13,534.
Catlin, who is based in Thailand, has capped one victory and six top-10s to finish third on the 2017 ADT Order of Merit, thereby earning his Asian Tour card for 2018.
“My first win on the ADT was a huge confidence booster for me. It showed me that I could compete and win in Asia and it went on to set me up for a great year in 2017 where I had played the most consistent golf to earn my Asian Tour card for this season.
“I know we are playing a different course this year and I heard it’s a lot of irons off the tees. But having said that, it doesn’t matter because I treat it like a new course every time I step out there. I’ve had great memories there but I just want to stay in the present,” added Catlin.
Other notable names in the field include former Asian Tour winners Mardan Mamat of Singapore and Kieran Pratt of Australia.
All ADT events are afforded Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) status. The winner of each tournament receives a minimum of six OWGR points while the top-six players and ties earn points on a sliding scale.
The leading five players on the ADT Order of Merit at the end of the season will earn playing rights on the premier Asian Tour for the 2019 season.
For more information on the ADT, please visit www.asiandevelopmenttour.com.
Ends.
About Asian Development Tour
The Asian Development Tour was launched in 2010 with the aim of creating a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia. Sanctioned by the Asian Tour, the Asian Development Tour will ultimately create a new playing platform for emerging stars from across Asia and around the world. Through the Asian Tour Qualifying School, players will qualify for the Asian Development Tour and enjoy the opportunity to hone their games and talent through a secondary circuit in Asia. Designed in the same structure as the Web.com Tour in America and European Challenge Tour, the Asian Development Tour is a stepping stone to the Asian Tour and the exciting world of international golf. The Asian Development Tour has been structured to ensure the best opportunities for its members. The leading five players on the Asian Development Tour will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season, ensuring a proper career pathway for aspiring professionals. All ADT events receive Official World Golf Ranking points.
Bogor, Indonesia, March 20: Indonesia’s top contender Danny Masrin aims to build on his recent good form at the US$70,000 OB Golf Invitational which gets underway at the Gunung Geulis Country Club’s East Course on Wednesday.
The 25-year-old Masrin will be inspired to win his first Asian Development Tour (ADT) title on his favourite hunting ground where he won last week and in December last year on the local circuit.
He has enjoyed a solid 2018 season so far where he finished tied-12th at the SMBC Singapore Open on the Asian Tour in January and shared fourth place in Brunei earlier this month. Masrin credited his good form after changing caddies and reverting to his old putter.
Many people were advising me to try different caddies, so I took their advice. Working with different caddies this year has been a great experience and I have grown as a player. I also changed back to blade putters starting at (Asian Tour) Qualifying School this year in January and everything is starting to come together,” said Masrin.
Left to Right : Danny Masrin (INA), Jimmy Masrin, George Gandranata (INA), Agus Triyono, Elki Kow (INA), Lukas Budiman.
Masrin, who currently leads the PGA Tour of Indonesia Order of Merit, will be encouraged by the local support to shoot for glory at the OB Golf Invitational.
“I think I always feel a bit of extra pressure when I’m playing in Indonesia especially on courses I know because I have a lot of support from people who encourage me to play well. I am feeling really good about my game and comfortable with the course so that will take away most of the pressure,” said Masrin.
“The key this week is going to be approach shots. There are a lot of elevation changes on this course so judging the stance along with swirling winds can make this course tough. The greens are somewhat undulating so making sure to miss in the right spot will be important. But I think personally I have a good game plan in mind and if I can clean up some of my mistakes from last week, this should be a good week for me,” added Masrin.
Also in the field this week is, George Gandranata, who won his first ADT title in 2016, and Joshua Wirawan who had his best showing on the ADT at the start of the month in Brunei where he finished a respectable tied-sixth place.
Jimmy Masrin, owner of OB Golf, said: "Our goal is to send Indonesian professional golfers to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Tournaments on the Asian Tour or the ADT give our local players opportunities to earn Official World Golf Ranking points which is key to raising their ranks and qualifying for the Olympics. Just last week on the ADT in Brunei, two of our local players finished top-10 which raised their rankings significantly. We are very happy to have four ADT tournaments in Indonesia this year in support of our goal and the OB Golf Invitational is a step in the right direction."
Other notable names in the 121-man field are Asian Tour winners Mardan Mamat of Singapore and Kieran Pratt of Australia.
All ADT events are afforded Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) status. The winner of each tournament receives a minimum of six OWGR points while the top-six players and ties earn points on a sliding scale.
The leading five players on the ADT Order of Merit at the end of the season will earn playing rights on the premier Asian Tour for the 2019 season.
For more information on the ADT, please visit www.asiandevelopmenttour.com.
Ends.
About Asian Development Tour
The Asian Development Tour was launched in 2010 with the aim of creating a career pathway for professional golfers in Asia. Sanctioned by the Asian Tour, the Asian Development Tour will ultimately create a new playing platform for emerging stars from across Asia and around the world. Through the Asian Tour Qualifying School, players will qualify for the Asian Development Tour and enjoy the opportunity to hone their games and talent through a secondary circuit in Asia. Designed in the same structure as the Web.com Tour in America and European Challenge Tour, the Asian Development Tour is a stepping stone to the Asian Tour and the exciting world of international golf. The Asian Development Tour has been structured to ensure the best opportunities for its members. The leading five players on the Asian Development Tour will earn coveted Asian Tour cards for the following season, ensuring a proper career pathway for aspiring professionals. All ADT events receive Official World Golf Ranking points.
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