The weather had the upper hand once again today at the OBGolf Invitational, with a lengthy rain delay putting paid to an already cramped schedule at the Damai Indah Golf’s BSD Course. In contrast to yesterday’s stop start frustrations, a single interruption of nearly four hours played havoc with the day’s program.

Overnight leader Jonathan Wijono maintained his grip on the lead when play was called just after 6pm in Jakarta due to darkness but the closing pack led by compatriot Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra were making inroads on his advantage in preparation for a full onslaught when play resumes tomorrow.

Ramadhanputra carded three birdies in his opening nine holes to draw level with Wijono, who only managed to improve his overnight score by one before the hooter sounded to end the day’s play. With most of the back nine remaining to complete Round Three the pair will be neck and neck when they get back out on the course on Friday morning.

Jonathan Wijono keeping grip on the lead. Photo by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf

Wijono, who famously has abandoned his putter in place of his trusty two iron, was philosophical about the weather delays.

“The delays didn’t really affect me, although the game today was bit stressfuI. I had a lot of good approach shots but a lot of missed putts. Unlucky putts. Not a bad putt, just not lucky. Started on the line but at the end, just veered off to the left or the right”, he said.

“Tomorrow I just have to be patient. I will stick with my game plan. Hopefully the momentum will change tomorrow. I’ll be happy if I’m in second or third place for the last round, I don’t like being in the lead on the final day”

Ramadhanputra was also equivocal about the rain delays. Having completed his round yesterday he started the day refreshed but took his time to settle in the early wet conditions. “In the first couple of holes it was rainy which made the short game pretty challenging, but after 5 holes the course became a bit easier,” he explained.

“My game was OK today. I think I’m in a good position – eleven holes with three birdies – and I hope tomorrow will be even better. Strategy today was to control my irons shots and my ball striking was pretty good. Missed a couple of putts but overall pretty good.”

Of the day’s other contenders, the group of Lloyd Jefferson Go, Danny Masrin and Chen Guxin set the pace for the field, each scoring the day’s best score of four under par, generally trading birdies as they made their way through to the back nine. Returning to play on the 13th hole tomorrow, the trio will need to keep up the challenge to make up four or five shots on the leaders.

India’s Udayan Mane, moving up into third spot. Photo by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf

India’s Udayan Mane has been in contention on all three days so far and was going well with three birdies today, until an unfortunate bogey on the 9th hole pulled him up short as darkness fell. At 12 under and two under for the day, he will also be looking to make a fresh start when play resumes.

Danny Chia of Malaysia started strongly with a birdie to add to his strong showing yesterday, although a double bogey on the next hole brought him swiftly back to reality. Posting a birdie two holes later was enough to see him card a par score for the day and he will return to the course with only a few holes to play.

Danny Chia of Malaysia, in fourth after even par start. Photo by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf

Rookie Indonesian golfer Jonathan Wijono turned in a blistering nine-under round in a stop-start day at the OBGolf Invitational today with a score of 63 to dramatically take the lead in his first ever Asian Development Tour event as a professional – and he did it all without a putter in the bag!

The 22-year-old national athlete turned professional in 2020 after a strong amateur career, including individual gold and a team silver in the 2016 Indonesian National Games. He resisted the switch to professional status while still at college in Perth, maintaining that he would turn pro when ready, and when he could devote all his time to golf.

He certainly showed what he is capable of today, turning in a commanding performance in his first ADT event and on a day when the weather kept disrupting the flow of proceedings with several breaks in the action. The US$70,000 OBGolf Invitational event is being played at the Damai Indah Golf’s BSD Course from June 7-10.

“My game was very good today. I didn’t expect to shoot nine under, just maybe around five under. I tried to get birdies on the par fives and maybe on the short par 4 but luckily today I played really good. My strategy was on point and I executed well so I ended up better than I expected,” he said.

“I was quite tired because of the stops. Today we had I think five or six stops which was tiring. My approach shots were working quite well, I could get the ball in close to the pin with a lot of birdie chances below five meters. That was a strong part of my game today.”

Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra started strongly and finished with a 68. Photo by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf

Following up on his his four-under 68 yesterday, Jonathan leads the tournament going into the final round, two shots ahead of compatriot Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra who started strongly but dropped a few shots in the closing stretch to finish with 66.

“Jowi”, as Jonathan is known, unusually doesn’t like using a putter.

“Actually I didn’t bring the putter to Jakarta. I’ve only 13 clubs in my bag, I used the two iron as my putter. Why? Because I just don’t feel comfortable with the putter, Just from the setup I don’t feel comfortable. I tried with five different putters and it didn’t work, I don’t know why, but the two iron is like my best friend.

“Tomorrow I’ll just try to play like usual, follow my game plan, follow the same strategy as today and yesterday.” With a putter? No, still no putter,” he laughed.

Sarun Sirithon sits in third place after a four-under 68. Photo by Yulius Martinus / OBGolf
With groups still out on the course as the day drew to a close, including the first round leaders Poosit Supupramai and Udayan Mane, other members of the field put in a strong showing.

Thailand’s Sarun Sirithon, who made a late charge into third place on Tuesday, carded a solid 68 to finish on 10 under. He started strongly on the back nine with three birdies but two dropped shots on his final nine holes pushed him back to a one under finish for the nine, helped by one birdie and and eagle on the par-five fourth hole.

Ryoto Furuya of the USA, who was just one under and sharing 25th place after round one, posted an impressive 65 to top a group in fourth place, helped by a strong five birdies on his second nine.

David Langley of England looked to capitalize on his 69 in round one, and with seven birdies offset by two bogeys he scored a solid 67 to join the group on eight under in fourth. Malaysia’s Danny Chia completed nine holes today at three under and also remains with a share of fourth. He will finish his round tomorrow.

Thailand’s Suttijet Kooratanapisan, Chen Guxin of China and Singapore’s Abdul Hadi share 10th place between them, carding a 69, 71 and even par 72 respectively.

Indonesia’s Danny Masrin sits at five under, following up his 69 yesterday with a two under score of 70 today. He shares 13th place with Van Thomas of the USA, who remains out on the course with a score of four under so far for the day, and Australia’s Jack Murdoch is also showing strong form at two under after nine holes, with a birdie, bogey and eagle making up his front nine 34.

Play was suspended shortly before 7pm due to darkness, and a number of players remain on the course needing to finish the second round. The cut is projected at +1, with 53 players currently within the limit.

Thailand’s Poosit Supupramai set the early pace at the OB Golf Invitational on Tuesday, June 7, with a flawless round of seven under par to finish the opening day tied for the lead on 65 with India’s Udayan Mane.

Supupramai, after teeing off in one of the first groups, posted a bogey-free round with four birdies on the front nine and three on the back, closely followed by Singapore’s Abdul Hadi playing in the same group. India’s Udayan Mane also started very strongly, with a powerful six-under 30 on the front nine, and would have grabbed a late solo lead if not for an unfortunate bogey on the 17th.

Hadi, with two starts on the Asian Tour already this year, had a more mercurial front nine with six birdies and one bogey, but was unable to maintain momentum and slipped back to third place with a six-under 66. Thailand’s Sarun Srithon was one of the later finishers who completed their round before play was stopped for a second time due to rain. He carded a 66 to join the group in third spot, together with Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin.

Inclement weather stopped play temporarily at 2.05pm, with golfers returning to the course at 3.15pm after a short delay. The US$70,000 event, played on the Damai Indah Golf’s BSD course on the outskirts of Jakarta, finishes on June 10th. Play was stopped a second time at 5.28pm and will resume on Wednesday at 6.30am.

Danny Chia of Malaysia started the day in steady fashion. Teeing off on Hole 10, he maintained par through the first nine holes, then began to gather pace for a strong finish, birdieing six of his last nine holes to score a five-under 67 and secure sixth place, later tied with Peradol Panyathansedh of Thailand. Chia’s compatriots Paul San and Khor Kheng Hwai finished four shots back in a tie for 18th with Van Thomas of the USA with a one under score of 71.

Thailand’s Jaturon Duangphaichoom, looking to get his season underway after a stuttering start, began strongly on the back nine, gathering momentum towards the turn and scoring a precious eagle on the par five ninth hole. A birdie on the very next hole showed promise but he was unable to make the most of his burst of form, dropping two shots before a last hole birdie rescued a score of three under and a share of eighth place. The elder Supupramai brother, Sattaya, also finished the day in the group at three under par, together with Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines, Australia’s Jack Murdoch, Suttijet Kooratanapisan of Thailand and USA’s Jeremy Wendelken.

Leading Indonesian amateur Amadeus Christian Susanto, fresh from a second place finish in the 31st Southeast Asian Games individual event, started sluggishly from the 10th tee with two bogeys in three holes, but was able to gather himself by the time he reached the turn and carded three birdies in his last 10 holes to finish in 15th place on even par.

Settee Prakongvech would love to win around the globe but wouldn’t mind either if every tournament he teed it up in was at Blue Canyon Country Club.

The 27-year-old continued his love affair with the Phuket course’s fabled Canyon layout when he captured his maiden Asian Development Tour (ADT) title on Friday in a classic snatch and grab job after jetting in from the Asian Tour.

Starting the final round of the $75,000 Blue Canyon Open three shots back, Prakongvech made the most of his own hot front nine and the misfortune of others coming home to win the 54-hole event, co-sanctioned by the MENA Tour, by a stroke.

Prakongvech’s closing four-under 68 saw him finish the Beautiful Thailand Swing (BTS) decider at -12, clear of a five-way tie for second featuring countrymen Chonlatit Chuenboonngam (65), Piya Sawangarunporn (67) and Witchayapat Sinsrang (68), Frenchman Victor Rui (71) and overnight co-leader Dodge Kemmer (72) of America.

It comes after the world No. 385 won the second of his thus far three All Thailand Golf Tour (ATGT) titles, the Singha All Thailand Championship, on the Canyon course last September.

This was Prakongvech’s sole appearance in the four-tournament BTS but victory comes as little surprise given he is currently third on the ATGT Order of Merit (OOM) and has been focusing his talents on the Asian Tour with his country exemption status.

He flew into Phuket fresh from a T-19 finish at the 41st GS Caltex Maekyung Open in Seoul and before that a career-best third-place finish at the DGC Open in India.

That US$31,5000 payday in Delhi makes up the bulk of the $39,421 that currently sees him feature 29th on the Asian Tour OOM.

“I have win here before at Blue Canyon, I love the course and today I played very well on the first nine,” said Prakongvech who negotiated the Canyon course’s outward half in four-under before mixing a birdie on 16 with a bogey on the next to play the inward nine in even par.

Settee Prakongvech secured his maiden ADT win with a steady and composed finish. Pictures by Jason Butler / BGB Images.

“I made two birdies on the par-3s and two birdies on the par-5s on the front nine, I hit every fairway, my game was very good and I can make the putts. But for the back nine, I have problems with the approach shots. I didn’t hit close to the pin so not many chances for birdie.”

It turns out Prakongvech got all the help he needed from the two groups ahead of him.

First tall Thai Vanchai Luangnitikul, the overnight co-leader with Kemmer, imploded with a triple-bogey six after ditching his tee shot on the par-3 14th in the water.

MENA Tour player and ADT affiliate Joshua Grenville-Wood was making a serious title charge in the penultimate group, arriving at the penultimate hole at five-under for the day and in the lead at -13 overall. But the young Englishman sadly found water to the right of the par-3 17th, settled for a double from the drop zone and then dropped another stroke on the last to sign for a 70 and a hard-to-accept share of seventh place.

Kemmer, who won the ADT’s season-opening Gurugram Open in India, had his putter to thank for hanging tough until the last hole when he ditched his drive into bushes hugging the left-hand side of the fairway on the par-4. The 34-year-old from south of San Francisco got a free drop from the GUR but came up short with his approach, pitched past the hole with this third and couldn’t muster one final piece of magic from his blade just when he needed it most.

“I am surprised, I didn’t expect for win,” Prakongvech said afterwards.

“I thought if I played my best I could finish top-five and not even when I finished I didn’t think I could win the tournament so it is a surprise.”

The $13,125 payday put Prakongvech up to fourth on The ADT OOM behind China’s Blue Canyon Classic winner Chen Guxin ($20,389), Kemmer ($18,756) and Laguna Phuket Cup champion Sarun Sirithon ($17,708).

Thailand’s Chanat Sakulpolphaisan ($13,059), Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin ($10,237) and Thai teen Denwit Boriboonsub ($10,131) occupy the other spots in the top seven that will earn automatic Asian Tour promotion at the end of the season set to feature a run of six events in Indonesia announced on Friday.

Englishman Tom Sloman, who won the BTS’s opening Laguna Phuket Challenge, clinched the MENA Tour’s 2020+ Journey to Jordan OOM despite missing the cut in the Blue Canyon Open, along with second-placed David Langley.

Countryman David Hague had a chance to snatch the title with a top-four finish on Friday but struggled with his putter and had to settle for a 17th place. The $879.38 Hague won meant he moved up to $26,053 for the season and remained third overall behind Sloman ($28,870) and Langley ($27,557).

Sloman earns a start in one of the Asian Tour’s upcoming International Series events for his victory while the top-10 in the final J2J OOM earn invites to the next two ADT events (the June 7-10 OB Golf Invitational at Damai Indah Golf BSD and the June 15-18 Indo Masters Golf Invitational presented by TNE at Imperial Klub Golf), plus exemption to the final stage of the 2023 Asian Tour Q-School.

If Dodge Kemmer can get just a little more co-operation out of his short irons on Friday, a second Asian Development Tour (ADT) title in three starts is a sensational possibility.

What he won’t be able to rely on is any help from Thai Vanchai Luangnitikul who will have his own victory plans after drawing level with the American atop the $75,000 Blue Canyon Open leaderboard on a Thursday of low morning scores and high afternoon winds.

A 68 to go with his opening 65 saw Kemmer set the clubhouse target at -11 on the Canyon layout before Luangnitikul breezed in with a 66 as the gusts picked up at Blue Canyon Country Club.

Frenchman Victor Riu, the most consistent of the MENA Tour players at the co-sanctioned series, will Strat Friday’s final round a shot further back while a pair of Thais, Poosit Supupramai and Atiruj Winaicharoenchai, are still very much in the hunt at -9.

Kemmer won the ADT’s season-opening Gurugram Open in India before by-passing the first half of the ADT’s Beautiful Thailand Swing (BTS) to play the GS Caltex Maekyung Open.

The 34-year-old made the cut at the Asian Tour event in Seoul then jetted into Phuket to finish a handy -8 and T-19 in the Blue Canyon Classic. After two days off, he’s back to his low scoring ways even though the second round wasn’t as flawless as the first.

“Today was a good scoring round but I didn’t quite have it going like I did yesterday, wedges and short irons weren’t really there and missed a few more fairways, “ Kemmer said.

“Nothing really felt as good but I got it up around greens a few times and up and down for birdie there so that definitely helped. I had a couple of bogeys but otherwise limited the mistakes.”

The trick now is finishing the job like he did in India with a closing 66 to win by three from Thai Chanat Sakulpolphaisan.

“Especially the three days ones [tournaments], it’s almost like today is Saturday [moving day] instead of Friday [the traditional second round] and it seems to be hard to follow a low round just statistically speaking so four-under I’m definitely happy with it.

“Another seven-under would have been amazing but unusual so happy with how it ended up and should be in a good spot tomorrow.”

Luangnitikul, the world No. 1391, finished T-4 at the Laguna Phuket Cup for his best finish in an OWGR event and has rebounded strongly after missing the cut at the following Blue Canyon Classic.

Suttijet Kooratanapisan hasn’t been so lucky. The first-round leader backed up his opening 64 with a windswept 79 to agonisingly miss the cut, made it -2, by a stroke. It included a bogey on the last in an inward nine negotiated in 41 shots, five over.

“I cannot hit the driver on this day, I lost about three or four balls,” the 31-year-old Thai said afterwards.

“Afternoon the strong wind is coming and it was really heavy on the last hole. Yeah, it is hard to take but the last thing [his round of 64] I think I can do it also so maybe I keep it for the next tournament.”

There was also major drama in the MENA Tour’s race within the wider BTS race with leader Tom Sloman (70-73 for -1) and second-placed David Langley (70-77 for +3) both missing the cut.

It means a third Englishman, David Hague, has an outside shot at winning the MENA Tour’s season-long ‘2020+ Journey to Jordan’ Order of Merit title in the last round. However, Hague will need some Friday fireworks as he is $3696 behind Sloman in the money list and will need to finish fourth or better to claim the crown and with it a start in on the Asian Tour’s upcoming $1.5 million-plus International Series events.

After a Thursday 70, Hague will start the final round at -5, six strokes off the lead and four strokes behind the current joint fourth place sitters.

Given Suttijet Kooratanapisan has missed all three previous cuts at the Beautiful Thailand Swing (BTS), few expected his birdie and eagle-laden charge to the summit of the Blue Canyon Open leaderboard on Wednesday.

What wasn’t a surprise was to see a low number, in this case an eight-under 64 on the Canyon course at Blue Canyon Country Club, beside the 31-year-old Thai’s name.

Kooratanapisan is famous for carding golf’s mythical number, 59, at nearby Laguna Golf Phuket during the 2017 Phuket Open, also an Asian Development Tour (ADT) event.

While he’s won on The ADT before at the 2016 Bangladesh Open, the man from Ratchaburi is still searching for his maiden Asian Tour title. You might have thought it was a long way off after his BTS struggles but it seems Kooratanapisan has rediscovered his go-low ability at the most opportune time.

“I just lost my confidence in first event but when I played in the practice round yesterday, I just find something to make me play better,” said Kooratanapisan who will take a one-stroke advantage over American Dodge Kemmer, who won the ADT’s season-opening Gurugram Open in India, into Thursday’s second round.

“I just find my tempo swing, and try to relax when I am in a round. Before that I have a pressure on myself so much.”

Kooratanapisan looked in fine-fettle from the get-go rather than a player struggling for form in the first round. He opened with back-to-back birdies from the 10th tee before adding one of two eagles on the 15th when he chipped in from 15 yards on the par-5.

There was another birdie as he turned in five-under 31 before he mixed two birdies and a watery bogey with a closing eagle on the 9th, the latter achieved with a four-iron gently cut to four feet. It was a nice bonus after he stood on the 9th tee, his 18th, with a more modest goal in mind.

“I thought when I was on the last hole that I just need only one more birdie so I’m very happy to finish with eagle,” said the world No. 1724.

Kooratanapisan is currently 151st on the Asian Tour Order of Merit (OOM) and fails to feature on the ADT money list after his struggles at the Laguna Phuket Challenge (+7 for T-105), Laguna Phuket Cup (+3 for T-93) and Blue Canyon Classic (- 1 for T-63). But he’s hoping Wednesday’s score signals a change in fortunes.

“My goal this year is I need to finish top 60 on the Asian Tour or try get top seven on The ADT [and gain automatic graduation to the main tour]. Today is a good start.”

French MENA Tour player Victor Riu and Thai Settee Prakongvech will start Thursday joint third after 66s while another Thai, Vanchai Luangnitikul, carded a five-under 67 to share fifth place alongside Malaysia’s Paul San.

Inside the top-15 is Lao’s Thammasack Bouahom whose round of 69 included a rare albatross two on the par-5 9th, his closing hole.

PHUKET, THAILAND: Tom Sloman of England pictured in action during the first round of the Blue Canyon Open. The US$75,000 event is held at Blue Canyon Country Club from May 18-21 and is part of the #BeautifulThailandSwing, a four event series co-sanctioned by the Asian Development Tour and the MENA Tour. Picture by Jason Butler/BGB images.

The finale of the MENA Tour OOM race, meanwhile, remains a cliffhanger with Journey to Jordan leader Tom Sloman signing for a two-under 70 – the same score as his nearest challenger David Langley. One better is fellow Englishman David Hague who is third in the race, one of only four players who can still capture the overall title and a player, not unlike Kooratanapisan, who is finally finding some form after missing the past two cuts.

The winner of the 2020+ Journey to Jordan, which will have spanned nine events, five countries, two continents and 837 days by the end of the Blue Canyon Open courtesy of the pandemic, earns an invite to one of the Asian Tour’s new $1.5 million-plus International Series events.

After coming within a whisker of his maiden Asian Development Tour (ADT) title two days ago, Denwit Boriboonsub cruelly understood what Jack Nicklaus meant when he uttered one of golf’s most famous quotes long before the Thai teen was born.

“Golf is not, and never has been, a fair game.”

With three successive 66s for an impressive -15 total on the Lakes layout at Blue Canyon Country Club, Boriboonsub looked to have produced the consummate front-runner’s performance to capture the Blue Canyon Classic on Sunday. What no one had figured on, or could even account for due to the lack of live scoring, was China’s Chen Guxin storming home three groups ahead with seven birdies in his last eight holes to get to -16.

Boriboonsub was finally alerted to Guxin’s clubhouse lead after hitting his own approach into the 54th and final hole but could not coax in the resulting 10-footer for birdie to force a playoff. It stung but perhaps the talented Thai 18-year-old will take some solace from another timeless golf ditty.

“I never learned anything from a match I won,” said Bobby Jones.

Thankfully Boriboonsub doesn’t have long to dwell on his near-miss with the $75,000 Blue Canyon Open, the final event of the quickfire Beautiful Thailand Swing, getting underway on the adjoining Canyon course at Blue Canyon Country Club on Wednesday.

As Ben Hogan once said, “The most important shot in golf is the next one.”

“The Blue Canyon Classic, the final round, I mean I played pretty well but it was just not my day,” said Boriboonsub. “The winner, [Guxin] he shot seven birdies in his last nine holes. I shot five-under, yeah 66, but yeah, this is golf. I’m happy with the result to finish solo second.

“I thought I’d done enough, but there’s no live scoring and I think five-under was still pretty good.”

It seems it is only a matter of time before Boriboonsub captures his first Asian Tour title and it won’t be a surprise if it comes this week or on the main tour. The now world No.436 has already won on the All Thailand Golf Tour (ATGT) and finished joint runner-up behind countryman Phachara Khongwatmai at the Asian Tour’s Laguna Phuket Championship in December.

“I think that one, it’s a confidence booster for me, for that young age, for a [then] 17-years-old, to get second place on the Asian Tour is huge. To get more confidence and I got world ranking points also, it’s a lot,” said Boriboonsub.

“My goal is to win this week but let’s see, let’s hope it works.”

Do you feel like you are closer to victory, especially after going so close two days ago?

“I’m not sure now. I’ll just play my best and hope for the results, hope they come my way.”

Like many young stars in waiting, Boriboonsub envisions a future crisscrossing the globe. Unlike others, the young Thai possesses the calm demeanour of a far more grizzled veteran. The way he emotionally flat-lined his way through the final round of the Blue Canyon Classic was as impressive as his ball-striking and patient course management.

“At the end of the year, I’ll go to Asian Tour Q-School and DP World Tour. This is the beginning of the journey. I’m pretty happy with the results in Thailand but my goal is to play in Europe or the PGA Tour.”

As Boriboonsub works his way through the Asian Tour eco-system, he’ll do well to remember the wise words of Nicklaus, Jones and Hogan along the way. It’s not the wins that shape you, rather how you respond to adversity. The first evidence of that will become evident when Boriboonsub makes his way to the 10th tee for his 7.40am tee time.

Like so many players, Chen Guxin overtly idolises Tiger Woods. Even his email address references the GOAT and golf stardom.

The 18-year-old from Hunan province isn’t China’s best golfer yet, much less in the same stratosphere as the 15-time major champion but he is well and truly on his way to rock star golf status in the People’s Republic and perhaps even beyond.

Guxin produced a stunning back-nine charge with seven birdies in his last eight holes to snatch the $75,000 Blue Canyon Classic from overnight leader Denwit Boriboonsub on Sunday – and a little more limelight in his homeland.

An eventual eight-under 63 helped Guxin, who started the final round two shots back and in the third from last group, set the clubhouse target at -16. That proved a bar set just a stroke too high for Boriboonsub who finished with a solid 66 but watched an eight-foot birdie attempt on the 54th and final hole agonisingly burn the cup and with it extinguish his chance at a playoff.

It was Guxin’s maiden Asian Development Tour (ADT) and MENA Tour victory and a third pro win after a purple patch last June saw him win twice on the China Tour, at the Lanhi Classic and Xian Classic.

The world No. 484 could yet soar to a career-high OWGR – he has been as low as 435th – and perhaps as high as the fifth-ranked player from China. What is guaranteed is that the US$13,125 payday has propelled the teen to the summit of The ADT Order of Merit with a total of $20,389 through four events.

“This is my first win outside of China which makes me very confident for the future,” Guxin said.

“My big goal is I hope I can get onto the Asian Tour this year. Right now with country exemption it is hard to get into Asian Tour events but ADT I should be able to play all of it…but I look forward to playing in the bigger tournaments.”

Guxin started out quietly on Sunday, a bogey on the par-3 8th halving the gains he’d made with two earlier birdies. But then something clicked on the 11th and almost without knowing it he had birdied six holes on the trot. As his caddie Adam Wang explained afterwards, just about every shot was perfectly struck from the 11th tee onwards.

“On the 11th, something changed, it made me confident and happy but I still can’t believe I made seven birdies… it was magical,” Guxin said of his lowest round as a professional.

“Whatever distance, I saw it get in the hole.”

You had to feel for Boriboonsub. The Thai, also only 18, is a star in waiting as illustrated by his runner-up finish and near $75,000 payday at last December’s Laguna Phuket Championship on the main tour.

Despite a plucky fight and six birdies, Thai teenager Denwit Boriboonsub was unable to match Chen’s back nine charge. Picture by bgbimages.com

Unusually calm under pressure, he flat-lined his way to six birdies. He will, of course, rue a bogey on the 5th but perhaps not as much as not knowing where he stood on the leaderboard playing the final holes. It was a challenge for all 35 players who had started Sunday within five strokes of Boriboonsub.

Witchayapat Sinsrang closed with a 67 to snare solo third place on -13, three shots shy of playing partner Guxin. Sadly Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin, playing in the final threesome for the second straight event, had a morning to forget, a closing 75 seeing him slide to a tie for 34th.

In the MENA Tour race within the wider Beautiful Thailand Swing race, Englishman Tom Sloman retained the ‘2020+ Journey to Jordan’ OOM lead, a share of 25th place and a $705 cheque moving him to $28,870 with just the Blue Canyon Open starting Wednesday to play.

Countryman David Langley made up some ground with a share of 19th and will go into the final tournament just $1311 adrift.

Technically anyone down to Bailey Gill in sixth place on $15,887 could still win the J2J OOM and with it a start in one of the Asian Tour’s $1.5 million+ International Series events in 2022. However, Gill would need to win the Blue Canyon Open and hope Sloman, Langley and third-placed David Hague, the latter frustratingly 0-3 in terms of cuts made at the BTS, either fail to make the cut or finish well down the field.

The fairytale rise and rise of Denwit Boriboonsub continues apace with the Thai on the cusp of a maiden Asian Development Tour (ADT) title at storied Blue Canyon Country Club.

The 18-year-old from Pattaya has carded successive 66s on the stunning Lakes layout at the famous Phuket club to sit alone atop the Blue Canyon Classic leaderboard at -10.

Boriboonsub will start the final round of the 54-hole Beautiful Thailand Swing event co-sanctioned by the MENA Tour with a single shot buffer over Malaysia’s in-form Shahriffuddin Ariffin, fellow Thai Witchayapat Sinsrang, India’s Kartik Sharma and Swede Filip Lundell who is incredibly contending despite a scary scooter crash on the eve of the tournament.

India’s Udayan Mane, the first-round leader, carded an even-par 71 on Saturday to remain eight-under for the championship and right in the mix for what shapes as a multi-player shootout for the title. As many as 35 players are within five strokes of Boriboonsub.

The teen pace-setter is among a catalogue of talented young Thais making their way in the Asian Tour eco-system. He sprung to international prominence with a joint runner-up finish behind compatriot Phachara Khongwatmai at the Laguna Phuket Championship on the Asian Tour in December, a result that netted him a healthy US$74,333 payday.

It also helped propel Boriboonsub inside the world’s top-500 for the first time. Indeed the Thai has soared from 1,353rd place in the OWGR to 721st after claiming the All Thailand Golf Tour’s Singha Chiang Mai Open last November, and then 487th after his Laguna title charge. That’s a mighty impressive 866 place jump up the rankings.

He got as low as 471st as recently as another top-five ATGT finish in January and while he is back out to 487th, he’ll be hoping to achieve a career-best ranking come Sunday afternoon.

Boriboonsub’s game is clearly trending in the right direction again. He quickly rebounded from a missed cut in the first of the four BTS events, the Laguna Phuket Challenge to finish -9 and in a share of 7th at the Laguna Phuket Cup which finished last Tuesday. He’s now 29 under par for his last five rounds on the ADT.

“I think it’s the rhythm of my swing and game plan and also my mindset,” Boriboonsub said of his form reversal after mixing six birdies and a bogey.

“I struggled for two months in January and February but it is coming right. Today’s round was pretty solid. I hit a lot of fairways and the irons are sharp.”

Ariffin will be particularly motivated in tomorrow’s final threesome. The 27-year-old Malaysian lost a playoff to Thai Sarun Sirithon last Tuesday after taking a four-stroke lead into the final round of the Laguna Phuket Cup.

But maybe they should all be wary of the injured golfer Lundell who added a gritty 67 to his gutsy 66 in the first round. The Swede is bandaged heavily after falling from his motorised scooter after a meal out in Phuket but is clearly determined not to waste what is just his second cut made in his third ADT start this season.

The cut was made at -3, the lowest of the BTS so far.

Patched up after a painful scooter crash, Filip Lundell finds himself in contention at the Blue Canyon Classic. Picture by Kent Gray / MENA Tour.

From scooter crash to contender, Filip Lundell soldiers on

When Filip Lundell was violently fish-tailed off his rented motor scooter three days ago, he regained his feet in a relative instant and figured he’d been the pilot in a very lucky escape.

A glance at his shocked pillion passenger and his own suddenly bloodied and stinging hands quickly told another story.

The very connection between the tools of his trade, a set of fancy PXG golf clubs, and short-term financial success were a mess. So too was his right elbow, left forearm and right knee. Shock set in even before he realised his grip on his Asian Development Tour (ADT) and MENA Tours dream was, quite literally, battered and bruised.

“I was kinda in shock, actually, how it happened, everything went so quick,” Lundell said rewinding to the crash.

“I was straight up and I was like, I’m alright and then I look at both of my hands and there was a bit of blood on them and I was like, wow, a bit in shock.”

Fast-forward two days, a quick medical centre patch-up job, a longer hospital visit and plenty of painkillers and antibiotics besides and the 26-year-old miraculously finds himself in contention at the Blue Canyon Classic.

Lundell will start the final round of the Beautiful Thailand Swing event on Sunday just a shot adrift of Thai teen Denwit Boriboonsub on the Lakes course at fabled Blue Canyon Country Club. Perhaps, just maybe, the well-worn cliché warning peers to be “wary the injured golfer” might have a fairytale ending in Phuket.

Lundell added a gritty 67 Saturday to his gutsy opening 66, some feat in the steamy Phuket conditions which soaked his swathe of bandages in sweat. In the opening round, the protection started to come away, necessitating a mid-round re-dressing courtesy of the helpful Blue Canyon staff. And even today his palms in particular were still tender and saw him reel away from several shots in genuine pain.

But given the COVID-19 pandemic, which put his career on ice for the best part of two years, Lundell decided to make his tee time on Friday and take it from there. It’s safe to say it’s turned out well so far for the Swedish pro who splits his time between Falsterbo and Phoenix, Arizona.

“I just did my best [in the opening round], I just had to fight through it and I mean, the painkillers are doing their job as well, so happy about that,” he said.

“Obviously I’m here to compete, trying to do my best and within a few days hopefully I can take these off and play normal again.”

But that is for later. More immediately, Lundell has a shot at an unlikely ADT/MENA Tour breakthrough.

“I shot a nice little 67 today. It’s a good start so far I think and despite the circumstances, I’ll take it. It’s not what I planned out but I’m really happy about the round and looking forward to tomorrow,” he said.

“At the moment I’m nine-under-par which is really nice. I’m really looking forward to probably striking it a little better and maybe making a few more puts. I just want to be in contention coming in down the final nine holes. Take it as it comes and yeah, I’m looking forward to it.”

Lundell insists he’s not a leaderboard watcher which won’t be a problem tomorrow given there is no live scoring. He’ll just have to rely on going low and seeing where he ends up. What is guaranteed is that he’ll be taking the bus home, with or without the trophy.

When Udayan Mane beat a star-studded line-up of countrymen to win the Professional Golf Tour of India’s (PGTI) Tour Championship last December, he figured he’d made the breakthrough that would propel him to the next level. Golf, typically, had other ideas.

The 31-year-old from Pune admits he began to take good golf “for granted” after seeing off names such as Rashid Khan, Veer Ahlawet, Shubhankar Sharma, S.S.P Chawrasia and Gaganjeet Bhullar in Jamshedpur.

But the good times haven’t exactly rolled since his 12th PGTI triumph, at least not until he turned up for the Beautiful Thailand Swing in Phuket co-sanctioned by the Asian Development Tour (ADT) and MENA Tour.

Mane capped an encouraging T-7 performance at the Laguna Phuket Cup on Tuesday with a closing 63 and produced more fireworks on Friday to earn the first-round lead at the $75,000 Blue Canyon.

The world No. 570 scorched around the Lakes layout at Blue Canyon Country Club in a mere 63 strokes, eight under, to edge Thailand’s Chanat Sakulpolphaisan and China’s Chen Guxin for the overnight led by a shot.

Mane’s eight-under score included six birdies and an eagle on the 11th when he drove it to just shy of the green on the par-4 and chipped in. Afterwards, the Indian rewound the clock to the PGTI Tour Championship with the beauty of hindsight.

“It was the biggest win of my career and it did give me confidence but I started to take things for granted and I paid the price,” Mane said.

“I just expected to show up and be in contention, not consciously but the attitude was such. I did struggle, anyone would. Got a wake-up call and started to work at it again.

“Anyway, this is me trying to get to the top again. On the AT, I have OOM winner status on the PGTI. So above country exemptions. On the ADT, same status. The goal this year is to play everything I get into and perform. Simple.”

Sakulpolphaisan, meanwhile, is making a lovely habit of hovering atop or very near the summit of ADT leaderboards.

The 31-year-old Thai made light of a blustery and sometimes wet Phuket morning to card a 64 and secure the clubhouse lead until Mane came in with a wet sail late in the evening.

Like Mane, Sakulpolphaisan’s seven-under circuit included six birdies and a hole-out eagle.

“I’m happy about my game right now,” said Sakulpolphaisan.

Why wouldn’t he be. The world No. 650 from Chonburi has been in sizzling form since the resumption of the ADT, finishing second to American Dodge Kemmer at the Gurugram Challenge in India in late March and barely missing a beat since.

Chanat Sakulpolphaisan continues a run of sizzling form as the Asian Development Tour season gathers pace. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.

He’s played the 11 possible rounds on this season’s secondary schedule in a combined 37 under par and boasts an eye-catching stroke average of 67.45. Only once has he signed a card of 70 or worse, frustratingly a final round two-over 72 which saw him drop 16 places to a share of T-50 at the Laguna Phuket Cup earlier this week. Before that, he shared ninth place at the Laguna Phuket Challenge and is comfortably positioned in third on the ADT Order of Merit; the top seven at seasons end earn automatic graduation to the main Asian Tour.

“I try to keep it simple with my game plan. One-shot at the time and stay in the present as much as I can,” said Sakulpolphaisan who missed the cut at three Asian Tour events before finishing T-32 at the International Series Thailand and T-23 at the DGC Open before his near-miss at the Gurugram Challenge.

“As of right now, I don’t have any more Asian Tour tournaments on my schedule so I will focus on playing ADT this year. Hopefully, if I’m play well enough I will have a chance for Asian tour next year.”

If he plays anything like he did on Friday, that outcome seems highly likely.

Sakulpolphaisan bolted out of the blocks on the Lakes course with three birdies in his first four holes and quickly made amends for a bogey on the 7th when he holed out from 50 yards on the 9th.

“I was in the fairway and had to hit over the bunker to the hole. That helped me move momentum for my round after my bogey on 7.”

He then added further birdies on the 10th, 15th and 18th to sign for his lowest round of the season thus far.

“I hit it pretty well today so give a lot opportunities for birdie. Overall, I’m happy and enjoy my round.”

Filip Lundell is the best of the MENA Tour continent heading into Saturday’s second round after a miraculous 66 that was achieved despite the Swede playing in a swathe of bandages after a motor scooter accident.

“I accidentally fell from my scooter two days ago. Got scratches that removed some skin on both my hands, elbows and one of my knees,” Lundell said.

“Today I played with bandages on both of my hands so it was a new experience from normal and painful at times. I’m very happy that I can play actually so I’m thankful for that. I saw a lot of eyes on me yesterday and today from different players as they might have wondered what I’ve been up to.

“Luckily, the golf course has a medical staff that came out to help to patch up my hands on my 13th hole as my started to bandages come off. I will get the right treatment I need to recover ASAP and just grind through the pain these coming rounds.”