Suteepat surges to the top at Parahyangan Golf
Indonesia’s Jonathan Wijono set a blistering pace at the start of the Combiphar Players Championship in Bandung today, posting a six-under-par 66 to establish a two shot lead after an early start and only a double bogey at his last hole prevented him opening an even bigger lead.
He was joined at the top by Thailand’s Suttijet Kooratanapisan during a weather-disrupted afternoon at the US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event, which is being held at Parahyangan Golf Club in Bandung from September 20-23.
“My game today was very good,” said Wijono after his round. “I’ve been playing really solid so far in practice and my goal is to maintain this level for the week. A few mistakes but I think today was very solid.”
“I was going well until I made a double bogey on nine. Second shot I hit it a bit too hard and the ball went in the bunker, that was one of the mistakes, but overall today was very solid, I’m very happy,” he added.
Kade McBride of Australia. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
The threat of lightning forced a two-hour weather delay during the afternoon and play was stopped due to failing light at 5.40pm. Suttijet has six holes to complete his round when play restarts at 6.15am tomorrow. Six groups on each nine still have to complete their rounds, and Round Two will start at 7am.
Indonesia’s Joshua Andrew Wirawan leads a group in third place on four under par, together with Australia’s Kade McBride and Chanat Sakulpolphaisan of Thailand. The three players were part of the morning wave and were able to complete their rounds without incident and posted a score of 68.
In sixth place on three under par, Malaysia’s Ervin Chang, Shinichi Mizuno of Japan and England’s Joshua Grenville-Wood posted early scores of 69, together with Tawit Polthai of Thailand and Indonesia’s Benita Kasiadi.
Ervin Chang of Malaysia. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
They were joined later in the day by Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin and Pannakorn Uthaipas of Thailand who made a promising start in the afternoon wave before progress was halted by the weather. They will resume in the morning with three holes to play.
Thailand’s Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij also sits in sixth with one hole to complete his first round, followed by Harrison Gilbert of Australia who has another six holes to go.
Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai held a slender lead in a tense finish to the OB Golf Invitational, presented by Jababeka, edging Malaysia’s Ervin Chang by a single shot to win the US$70,000 Asian Development Tour event.
At the start of the day the leader Suteepat was one in front of Chang, who was four ahead of the remaining pack, meaning the contest was essentially theirs and theirs alone at the Jababeka Golf and Country Club. They matched blows on virtually every hole, both finishing with a score of 66.
Suteepat, who also won the BNI Ciputra Golfpreneur tournament last month, said he was comfortable playing in Indonesia with two victories, and said his consistency in the early rounds was essential to hold off the hard-charging Chang.
“The first two rounds were so good, they were the key to being champion,” he said after the round.
“Playing well with the driver was key, as the setup here was more difficult (compared to BSD).”
Malaysia’s Ervin Chang, edged by a single stroke. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
Chang had the worst of openings with a bogey on the first hole, dropping him one shot further back.
The pair shared pars and then a birdie through the next four holes before the Malaysian was able to claw one back on the sixth hole.
Finally on the par-five 14th hole Chang’s eagle bested Suteepat’s birdie, putting the pair on level footing with four holes to play. The drama did not last for long though as the Thai player snatched back the advantage on the very next hole and was able to maintain his lead to the finish.
Eventually finishing six shots clear of their nearest challenger, the tussle for the remaining places was won by Thailand’s Chonlatit Chuenboonngam (68), claiming third with a 12-under-par score of 268.
Indonesia’s Jonathan Wijono put up something of a fight, only a late bogey forcing him into fourth place, while Jeremy Wendelken of the USA traded birdies and bogeys to finish with 69 and a solo fifth.
Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines celebrates his lone birdie on the 18th green, his first after a string of 17 pars. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
Sixth place was shared by the Thai pair of Chanat Sakulpolphaisan (68) and Piya Sawangarunporn (68), who came slightly unstuck on the back nine and dropping three shots. The group was completed by Lloyd Jefferson Go (69) of the Philippines, who posted a steady stream of pars for 17 holes before finally picking up a stroke on the last.
Kade McBride (70) of Australia and Sarun Sirithon of Thailand rounded out the top ten, sharing ninth place to finish with a combined score for the tournament of 263.
Round of the day, and the tournament, went to Thailand’s Tawit Polthai, who started the day at three over without breaking par for the first three rounds. He finally managed to unlock the secrets of the course on the final day, posting a fine 61 with a score marred only by a single bogey on the 16th hole.
Ervin Chang made a strong comeback push in the third round of the OB Golf Invitational, presented by Jababeka today, making up ground on Suteepat Prateeptienchai of Thailand who leads by just one shot going into the final day.
Trailing by three shots at the start of play, Chang was swiftly into the mix against Suteepat, making the first birdie and drawing level by the turn. He briefly took the lead on the back nine but Suteepat (67) picked up three shots on the run in to edge back into the lead at 15-under-par.
Ervin Chang of Malaysia. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
Chang (65), who led the US$70,000 Asian Development Tour event after the first round, was pleased with his recovery around the testing Jababeka Golf & Country Club course and posted another bogey-free score.
“I started off really well,” said the 24-year-old Malaysian. “I missed a couple of birdie putts but I’m really happy with my performance today. There were a couple of mistakes towards the end but I recovered well and I’ve given myself a good opportunity for tomorrow.
“Yesterday the wind was a little stronger in the afternoon, which made the course a bit tougher. That affected some of the decisions I made but I hung in there well and managed to come back with one under so I wasn’t too disappointed.
“Today was similar to the first round but I wasn’t making as many putts. None of the pin positions were easy. If you hit it too long you can go 20 or 30 feet past so you have to get the ball in the right position to give yourself a good look at birdie.”
Chonlatit Chuenboonngam of Thailand. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
Thailand’s Chonlatit Chuenboonngam, who began the day in sixth place, made significant strides up the leaderboard. His five-under-par score of 65 moved him into solo third place, albeit still five shots off the lead. His compatriot Sarun Sirithon (64) posted the low round of the day and sits in fourth spot, a position he shares with Jeremy Wendelken (66) of the USA.
Lloyd Jefferson Go continued his advance today, moving upwards with Jonathan Wijono of Indonesia from 11th place yesterday into a share of sixth with a pair of 67s. Kade McBride of Australia was going well but a couple of late bogeys left him with another score of 69 and he joined the group on seven under.
Matt Killen of England also posted a score of 69, together with Chanat Sakulpolphaisan of Thailand, the duo ending the day with a share of ninth place alongside Piya Sawangarunporn. The veteran Thai, who turns 39 in November, started the day in the final group but slipped out of contention early on.
Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai (pictured) took advantage of his early start and calmer weather in the second round of the OB Golf Invitational, presented by Jababeka, posting six birdies for 64 to take the lead on 12 under.
Compatriot Piya Sawangarunporn also advanced up the leaderboard, scoring the day’s best score with a bogey-free 63 to ease into solo second in the US$70,000 Asian Development Tour event.
First round leader Ervin Chang of Malaysia could only advance his score by one, playing in the afternoon at Jababeka Golf & Country Club when the wind picked up and left him with a one-under-par 69.
Nirun Sae-Ueng of Thailand. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
Australia’s Kade McBride also posted a 69, reducing his overall score by one but dropped into a share of fourth place with Thailand’s Nirun Sae-Ueng (68) who was going well until his final few holes, dropping three shots in as many holes to post a total of 134.
Jeremy Wendelken (68) of the USA and Matt Killen (68) of England improved on their first round scores to move into a share of sixth place, together with Thailand’s Chanat Sakulpolphaisan (67). His compatriots Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij and Chonlatit Chuenboonngam both scored even par.
Local golfers Jonathan Wijono and Benita Kasiadi lead a group on four under par in 11th place, together with Thailand’s Pisitchai Thippong, Abdul Hadi of Singapore and Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines who pegged a couple of late birdies to make ground.
Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij of Thailand. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OB Golf
China’s Chen Guxin (72) couldn’t get off the bogey train early in his round and was unable to build on his bright start in round one. He shares 16th place with Thailand’s Sarun Sirithon (70), Indonesia’s Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra (69) and Joshua Grenville-Wood of England who finished the day with even par.
Malaysia’s Ervin Chang set a blistering pace on the first day of the OB Golf Invitational presented by Jababeka on Tuesday, posting a flawless round of 62 with eight birdies to lead by two shots going into round two.
He holds the advantage over Suteepat Prateeptienchai of Thailand, who posted six birdies for a bogey free round of 64
Thailand’s Chonlatit Chuenboonngam, winner at the Gunung Geulis Golf Invitational in August, also scored well, with just a single bogey on his card for a 65 on the par 70 Jababeka Golf & Country Club course. He leads a strong group on five-under including Chen Guxin of China, Australia’s Kade McBride and the Thai duo of Suteepat Prateeptienchai and Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij, all of whom posted bogey-free scores.
Chonlatit Chuenboonngam of Thailand. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf
Chen, who has already won twice this season, heads the ADT Order of Merit, with a slim lead over Chuenboonngam, with Thailand’s Chanat Sakulpolphaisan and Prateeptienchai in close pursuit.
Chang, who has been focusing on controlling his game during the first two rounds, showed he is making progress with a run of three birdies in his first four holes in the US$70,000 Asian Development Tour event.
“It’s taken me a couple of tournaments to get into the groove and learn how to deal with the pressure for the first two rounds. But the last few tournaments, I wasn’t having a perfect start but was always around even par, or one under, which showed a bit of an improvement.
“Today I was feeling really comfortable with the way I was swinging and how the course was set up for me. I was able to recover from a couple of mistakes and was really happy with my performance.”
“I just kept trying to keep the ball in play on the fairway and give myself birdie chances. Ended up shooting eight birdies and zero bogeys which is always a good sign on the golf course,” said Chang.
Nirun Sae-Ueng of Thailand. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf
Chuenboonngam was also pleased with his performance, particularly after a disappointing practice round on Monday.
“I didn’t expect to make five under after my practice round, which wasn’t particularly good,” he said after turning in his card. “My game was good today, tee shots and irons were good, plenty of chances to make birdie.”
“The course is good, with big fairways and greens. There’s a few tough holes, the long par four and the long par three, but its just two or three holes and you can use driver on most holes because it’s easy to keep it in the fairways.”
“My key tomorrow is to keep within my game, shot to shot, and without thinking about things too much.”
Benita Kasiadi of Indonesia. Picture by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf
A group of three players lie one shot further back on 66 with a share of seventh place, led by Thailand’s Nirun Sae-Ueng, Oscar Zetterwall of Sweden and Australia’s Jack Murdoch.
In tenth place, the English pair of Matt Killen and Joshua Grenville-Wood are joined by the leading Indonesian scorer Benita Kasiadi, and the Thai quartet of Denwit Boriboonsub, Piya Sawangarunporn, Pisitchai Thippong and Sarun Sirithon. America’s Jeremy Wendelken completes the group on 67 with three birdies, the seventh bogey-free round of the day.
Chen Guxin secured his second ADT win of the season in Danang on Friday, winning on the first playoff hole to secure victory over Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines at the BRG Open Golf Championship in Vietnam, the first Asian Development Tour event in the nation.
Go, who battled well to get into contention with a two-under-par score of 70, was unable to capitalize on his efforts when his second shot on the playoff hole leaked right into the water, forcing him to take a drop and effectively conceding control of the match to Chen.
Both players made the fairway from the tee box at 18 in the playoff but after Go lost his ball to the right, Chen played short of the green with his second shot and chipped to within three feet to set up the chance for birdie and the win on Vietnam’s National Day.
Victory celebrations after Chen Guxin’s playoff victory over Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines.
Go, who has four top ten finishes on The ADT this year, chipped bravely to four feet from the apron and with only the prospect of a bogey at best, allowed Chen to putt out. Although he missed the birdie, Chen was able to secure the par and victory in this US$75,000 Asian Development Tour event.
Chen, who won in Phuket at the Blue Canyon Classic in May, opened with an early birdie but started to lose his way around the turn, posting four bogeys in five holes. He said after his round that he was getting nervous and starting to worry about the finish, but fortunately his luck turned and he was able to post three birdies in his last four holes to get back into contention.
Matt Killen of England, who started the day in fifth place, carded 70 on the final day to secure solo third, ahead of Oscar Zetterwall who struggled for most his round, dropping five shots before he was able to get back on track in the closing holes, posting a score of 75 which was enough for forth place.
Australia’s Jack Murdoch posted his first under par round of the tournament with a 70 to lead a group in sixth place with a score of 214, together with Thailand’s Chanat Sakulpolphaisan and William Harrold of England, who was also unable to build on his overnight score and posted a 75.
In ninth place, Shae Wools-Cobb of Australia fought back from Thursday’s score of 75 with a fine 68, five birdies only marred by a solitary bogey early in his round. He shared ninth place on a total of 215 with the Thai duo of Chonlatit Chuenboonngam and Pisitchai Thippong.
China’s Chen Guxin followed up on his share of second place in Vietnam on Thursday, taking control of the second round of the BRG Open Golf Championship from the front with a five-under-par total of 67. He leads by one shot after a run of seven birdies and just two dropped shots.
Oscar Zetterwall of Sweden trails by one shot at BRG Da Nang Golf Resort after posting 68 with just a single bogey on his card for solo second, followed by Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines who carded a second score of 69.
Oscar Zetterwall
Chen, who broke his driver yesterday and had to finish his round with only a 3-wood, was glad to have the big club back in the bag today. “Absolutely needed it today, for example on hole 5, a par 4 but it’s pretty long, I had to use a driver and hybrid to reach the green.”
“I feel pretty good with the way I played today,” he said after his round. “I started well with pars but in the middle I tried to make the green in two but it went right into the the water.”
“On the back nine, my putting was pretty good. I’m feeling good about my score, five under has put me in a pretty good place. The difference today was the wind, I had a morning tee time and the wind comes in later so I had a lot of chances to put it in a good place for putting.”
“Tomorrow I will be trying to stay calm. Some fairways are pretty narrow and it’s easy to hit it out of bounds or into the water. You have to stay calm around here.”
William Harrold
The English pair of William Harold and Matt Killen hold fourth and fifth spots respectively in the US$75,000 event, Killen making up ground with six birdies and two dropped shots after his even-par 72 yesterday. Harrold carded a bogey-free score of 70.
Four players make up the remainder of the top ten, led by Singapore’s Gregory Foo with a second round score of 71 to match his result on day one, ahead of Thailand’s Chanat Sakulpolphaisan (70) and the experienced Choo Tze Huang who improved his first round score by four shots.
Sweden’s Calle Strandberg was unable to improve on his overnight score, carding three bogeys on his front nine before making up some ground with four birdies on the back nine.
Indonesia’s Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra, with one win already this season at the OB Golf Invitational in June, was able to improve on his first round score by three strokes, his round only marred by a dropped shot on the final hole.
Tawit Polthai made a strong start to the BRG Open Golf Championship in Vietnam on Wednesday, carding a four-under-par 68 to lead the field after the first day’s play at BRG Da Nang Golf Resort.
The 28-year-old Thai, who finished third in the Laguna Phuket Cup in May, opened the day with back-to-back birdies, and posted four more on his back nine, with just two dropped shots, to finish ahead of a strong field.
He found the conditions tricky, finding the water on a few occasions but was able to recovered from an errant driver.
“It was a good day today even though I hit a lot of bad shots. Course was very windy, and it was difficult to get the ball in the right position,” he said.
“My short game was good but the tee shots were bad. I just want to improve my first shots for the next two rounds,” he added.
Paul San
His playing partner Paul San of Malaysia leads a chasing group of six players on three-under-par, together with Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines, England’s William Harrold and Sweden’s Oscar Zetterwall, who holed out o the par 4 eighth for an eagle.
Also in second place is Calle Strandberg of Sweden, making his debut appearance on the Asian Development Tour, who will be optimistic about his chances for a strong finish in the US$75,000 event.
Starting on the back nine, he carded two quick birdies before giving both shots back with a double on the par 4 14th hole, but recovered with three subsequent birdies to finish the day on three under and posted the early lead.
China’s Chen Guxin, winner of the Blue Canyon Classic in May, started strongly from the 10th tee with birdie, adding two more before the turn. A bogey/birdie pair meant he was unable to improve on his score and he finished the day also tied for second.
Miguel Delgado
Miguel Delgado of the USA, one of the day’s early starters, navigated his way around the course with one bogey and two birdies on each nine. A newcomer to the Asian Development Tour, his two-under-par 70 and a share of eight place will inspire confidence for the remaining two days of competition.
Singapore’s Nicklaus Chiam, a promising amateur making his start as a professional this year, began steadily but an unfortunate triple bogey on the par-4 eight hole threatened to derail his round. He recovered well, carding four birdies on his back nine to also finish with 70.
Thailand’s Pisitchai Thippong makes up the group in eighth, together with local contender Truong Chi Yuan, looking to make amends on home soil after missing the cut in last week’s BNI Ciputra Golfpreneur event.
Shinichi Mizuno of Japan, winner of the PGM Maybank Championship in 2018, played a steady round to finish with 71, making the turn at one-under-par after starting on the 10th tee, but despite one further birdie, a bogey on the last hole deprived him of a better position on the leaderboard.
Gregory Foo of Singapore, opened well with three straight birdies, but then gave two shots back shortly after and was unable to improve his score on the back nine to finish at one under. Galven Green of Malaysia and the USA’s Sam Gillis both carded one under par to share 12th place with Foo and Mizuno.
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