Thai hotshot Suteepat Prateeptienchai signalled his strong intention to seal the Asian Development Tour (ADT) Order of Merit crown by firing a three-under-par 69 in blustery conditions to take the opening-round lead at the Taifong Open on Thursday.

The 29-year-old Thai, who leads the money list thanks to three victories and five top-10s, fired five birdies against a double-bogey to lead by one shot over compatriot Sajawat Sriprasit and defending champion Lee Chieh-po of Chinese Taipei at the Taifong Golf Club.

Local stars Chan Shih-chang, a five-time Asian Tour winner, Hung Chien-yao, winner of the 2020 Taifong Open, as well as Kevin Yu, the highest-ranked Taiwanese player in 188^th place on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), are amongst those tied in fourth place following matchings 71s.

The Taifong Open is the concluding event of the ADT season, and boasts a prize purse of US$200,000, the joint richest event on the schedule. The top-10 finishers on the final Merit list after completion of play on Sunday will secure their Asian Tour cards for the 2023 season.

Suteepat Prateeptienchai of Thailand

Suteepat, who sits atop the money list with a current haul of US67,948, surprised himself by taking the lead in his first appearance at the Taifong Open and on a day where players battled 35km/h winds and only 11 players broke par.

“My putter is hot today. Good tee shots too, I missed just one fairway on the 14th hole where I had a lost ball but other than that, all else is good. I’m surprised with my score. It was so windy out there,” said Suteepat, coming off the back of a tied-fourth place finish in Saudi Arabia last week.

“Most birdies were made from within six to seven feet. I just hit good drives and place it in good position. It was great to make a birdie on sixth because it’s a toughest hole today. I hit a good drive there and then a soft pitching wedge to about three feet to set up birdie,” he added.

Suteepat is attempting to become the third Thai player to lift the ADT Order of Merit crown following Pavit Tangkamolprasert (2014) and Pannakorn Uthaipas (2017), a former winner of the Taifong Open – which is celebrating its seventh edition on the ADT this season.

Lee Chieh-po of Chinese Taipei

Lee Chieh-po, who has already secured his Asian Tour for 2023 after finishing inside the top-70 on the Order of Merit earlier this month, got his title defence off to a fine start, thanks to a hot putter which helped him navigate his way around the greens in just 25 putts.

“My ball striking was disappointing today but I hit my irons well and I putted well too. Nice to return here as the defending champion but the conditions this week aren’t quite the same as last year. I just want to play my best. Nice to finish with two birdies,” said Lee.

Sajawat, who started from the 10^th, traded four birdies against two birdies and also rode a hot putter.

He said: “I hung in there very well. It’s tough out there. The wind was really blowing. It’s my first time here but I heard about this course before coming. I kind of expected it to be this tough so I’m glad I came back with an under-par round today.

“I putted very well today, that was the key. Made a long 20-footer to save par on the first hole and that’s probably my highlight for today.”

Sajawat Sriprasit of Thailand

Ends.

Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai, a three-time winner on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) this year, is hoping to end a successful year by sealing the Tour’s Order of Merit (OOM) crown at the US$200,000 Taifong Open, which starts tomorrow at Taifong Golf Club.

The 29-year-old Thai sits at the top of the OOM with a current haul of US$67,948, thanks to three victories and five top-10s, including a tied-fourth place finish at the Aramco Invitational in Saudi Arabia last week.

A host of players could potentially catch him at what is the joint most lucrative event on Tour but Suteepat is determined to ride on his recent good run of form to capture the prestigious Merit crown.

“This is my first time playing the Taifong Open,” said Suteepat.

“I am excited. It has been a great season for me. I have never thought that I would win three times. It will be superb if I can end the year with a good result this week and win the Order of Merit title.

“But I won’t think too much about it. I have strong competitors here. Playing on the ADT this year has been a great experience for me. I have learned a lot and I hope to bring them on to the Asian Tour next year.”

Suteepat is attempting to become the third Thai player to lift the ADT Order of Merit crown following Pavit Tangkamolprasert (2014) and Pannakorn Uthaipas (2017), a former winner of the Taifong Open – which is celebrating its seventh edition on the ADT this season.

Chonlatit Chuenboonngam trails compatriot Suteepat by about US$6,619 in second place on the Merit list while Indonesia’s Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra, a two-time winner on the ADT this season, sits in third place with a current haul of US$55,619.

GURGAON-INDIA-Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines pictured on Friday November 15, 2019 during the weather affected round one of the USD$ 400.000 Panasonic India Open at the Classic Golf and Country Club, Gurgaon, India. Picture by Paul Lakatos/Asian Tour.

Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines, placed sixth on the Merit list, is also playing this week and is looking to finish a strong season with his first ADT win. The 27 year old has notched seven top-10s in nine starts without missing a single cut.

He said: “The game is feeling good. This is my sixth event in-a-row already. I’m excited, we’ll see how it goes. I started playing on the ADT at the OB Golf Invitational in Indonesia in June and I just kept it going from there. Finished 39th last week which wasn’t ideal so I hope to rebound with a good result this week.”

Other notable players in the field include former Asian amateur star and PGA TOUR player Kevin Yu, defending champion Lee Chieh-po, who successfully secured his Asian Tour card for 2023 after finishing in the top-70 on the Order of Merit, as well as local star Chan Shih-chang, a proven winner on the Asian Tour and a three-time winner of the Taifong Open in 2010, 2014 and 2018.

The top-10 finishers on the final OOM after completion of play on Sunday will secure their Asian Tour cards for 2023 season.

Ends.

Thailand’s Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij posted a flawless six-under-par 65 to take the early lead in the Aramco Invitational at Rolling Hills Golf Course in Saudi Arabia today.

The 26-year-old Thai, winner of the Singha Classic on the All Thailand Golf Tour earlier this year, posted three birdies on each nine to edge into a slender lead in the US$125,000 Asian Development Tour event.

The early clubhouse leader, Saudi golfer Othman Almulla, started in the morning wave and despite a couple of early bogeys, made use of his local knowledge to pick up six shots on the back nine.

“Obviously, I’m so, so happy that we’re playing at my home course and I wanted to start really well. I didn’t start amazing on the front nine, I missed a couple of putts and made the turn at one over.

“I thought, I know this place, so I just need to keep giving myself chances. Some of the putts started to go in and I finished really strongly,” he recalled.

“I was sad to miss the Saudi Open for family reasons, so I felt like we needed to do something really nice this week.”

Othman Ibrahim Almulla

He said he was excited for Aramco and Rolling Hills to host their first international tournament, and how it meant a lot to him and other golfers in Saudi Arabia as part of the development of the sport in the Kingdom.

“It means a lot. I’ve been super lucky to be supported by Golf Saudi and Aramco since I was a young kid. I grew up playing golf here and have seen how they support sports and get people engaged with outdoor activities,” he said.

“They were one of the first real supporters of this transformation in the Kingdom with sport, from the first Saudi iInternational and then for them to support ADT as well, it provides a really cool platform for the best Asian players to come and develop and move up to the bigger ranks.”

“It just goes to show that when you get good organization and strong companies supporting the youth and the good talent, really cool things can happen,” he added.

“I’m really looking forward to seeing many, many young boys and girls from Saudi Arabia also playing and hopefully aspiring to be professional golfers soon.”

Also posting a five-under-par score of 66 were Thailand’s Suttijet Kooratanapisan, who dropped a single shot on the 10th hole, and Jarand Ekeland Arnoy of Norway.

Arnoy, who finished strongly at the PIF Saudi Open last week, had a more eventful day, with four bogeys offset by seven birdies and an eagle on the par 5 12th hole.

A shot back on 67, Thai golfers Sarun Sirithon, Pisitchai Thippong and Witchayanon Chothirunrungrueng lead a group in fifth, including England’s Barnes Wallis and Order of Merit contender Chen Guxin of China, who missed last week’s PIF Saudi Open.

Dodge Kemmer of the USA, winner of the season-opening Gurugram Challenge in March, and Malaysia’s Khor Kheng Hwai, rounded out the group on four-under-par.

In 12th place, on three-under, a group of nine players includes last week’s winner Naraadjie E Ramadhanputra and the leading amateur in the field, El Mehdi Fakori of Morocco.

Ramadhanputra, who moved up into third place in the OOM following his win at the PIF Saudi Open, could be poised to make a late charge if he does well this week.

He currently leads OOM front runner Suteepat Prateeptienchai by a stroke while his other contenders – Chonlatit Chuenboonngam in second and Shariffuddin Ariffin in fourth – both scored par today.

Overnight leader Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra maintained the pressure in a rain-delayed PIF Saudi Open today, extending his lead in the early stages and then plotting his way round a damp Riyadh Golf Course to clinch an assertive three shot victory and secure a spot in the Saudi International 2023.

The US$200,000 Asian Development Tour event, the first hosted by the tour in Saudi Arabia, was delayed due to overnight weather. Heavy rain forced the organizers to first revise tee times an hour later than scheduled and then finally opt for a shotgun start with threesomes at 10.30am.

Ramadhanputra (197), who won the OB Golf Invitational in Jakarta in June, started from the first tee in the leading group and set out his stall early. Two birdies in his first three holes and an eagle on the par five fifth hole saw him extend his advantage over playing partners Harrison Gilbert of Australia (200) and England’s Joshua Grenville-Wood (201).

Joshua-Grenville-Wood, who shot a new course record score of 62 on the opening day, finished in third place at the PIF Saudi Open in Riyadh.

Grenville-Wood and Gilbert, who started the day two and three shots behind the Indonesian, were unable to keep pace with the leader who posted a steady string of pars before birdieing the 13th and 16th holes to seemingly put the result beyond doubt.

A bogey on the 17th gave some hope to the chasing pack but by then the win was inevitable and a birdie on the 18th clinched the deal. Gilbert posted a matching six-under-par 66 to finish in second place with Grenville-Wood carding a 68 to take third.

Benjamin Follett-Smith of Zimbabwe, who started the day tied for sixth on eight under par, posted a bogey-free 66 and briefly threatened to challenge for the lead, but was only able to claim fourth spot with a total of 202.

Dodge Kemmer of the USA, winner of the season-opening Gurugram Challenge in March, posted the equal lowest score of the day with a flawless seven-under-par 65, rising up the leaderboard to share fourth place with Follett-Smith.

Australia’s Harrison Gilbert, matched the leader over two rounds but was unable to make up for a first day deficit of three shots

In sixth place, India’s Udayan Mane posted a bogey-free 66 to improve on his overnight score, together with Jared Ekeland Arnoy of Norway, who equalled the low round of the day with a 65.

Thailand’s Pisitchai Thippong shared eight place with compatriot Chanat Sakulpolphaisan and Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines, both of whom were able to make up ground on the leaders in the season-long Order Of Merit.

Current OOM leader Suteepat Prateeptienchai, who has already won three times this year, ended up well down the field, together with fellow Thai Chonlatit Chuenboonngam who lies a close second in the OOM. Chonlatit finished tied for 19th and Suteepat with a share of 46th place. The other contender on the OOM, Chen Guxin of China, did not take part in this event.

The ADT is in action again next week in Saudi Arabia for the Aramco Invitational at Rolling Hills Golf Course followed by the final event of the season at the Taifong Open in Chinese Taipei.

The Saudi International powered by Softbank Investment Advisors takes place at the Royal Greens Golf Course in Saudi Arabia from February 2-5, 2023. The US$5,000,000 event is the opening event of the Asian Tour’s 2023 season and last year was won by Harold Varner III of the USA.

Indonesia’s Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra made a bold bid for the front on Day Two of the PIF Saudi Open in Riyadh, posting a six-under-par 66 to wrest the top spot from England’s Joshua Grenville-Wood.

Grenville-Wood, who held the overnight lead after a storming 62 in the first round, could only manage a 71 in his second lap of the Riyadh Golf Club course, and trails the young Indonesian by two shots in the US$200,000 tournament.

Ramadhanputra, winner of the OB Golf Invitational in Jakarta in June, posted six birdies and two bogeys on his way to the lead with 131 strokes in total, and will be looking to push on in the final round of the inaugural Asian Development Tour event in Saudi Arabia.

Australia’s Harrison Gilbert, winner of the Indo Masters Golf Invitational in June, was one of the later starters in Round Two and maintained a steady pace throughout the day. He dropped no shots and picked up six strokes on the field, finishing in solo third on -10 with a flawless 66.

Thailand’s Pisitchai Thippong, who began the day in eighth place, also made a bid for the lead but his round very nearly went off the rails early on when he carded a double bogey on the par 5 second. He was able to get his round back on track, posting a string of pars before climbing on the birdie train at the eighth hole, posting six birdies without loss to finish with a 68 in fourth place. He shares position on nine-under-par with Ahmad Baig of Pakistan who scored a three-under 69.

Low round of the day went to Thailand’s Piya Sawangarunporn with an eight birdie round of 65, dropping just the one shot as he hoisted himself into a share of sixth pace with leading amateur Elyes Barhoumi of Tunisia (68) and Benjamin Follett-Smith of Zimbabwe (69).

Puwit Anupansuebsai of Thailand heads a group on seven-under-par in ninth place, together with Shariffuddin Ariffin of Malaysia and Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines, both of whom are looking to finish strongly in the Order of Merit this season. They hold third and fifth places in the table, with fourth placed Chen Guxin of China not playing this week.

Current OOM leaders, the Thai duo of Suteepat Prateeptienchai and Chonlatit Chuenboonngam, failed to make any significant ground overnight and finished the day well down the field, in 51st and 41st places respectively.

Udayan Mane was able to improve on his first round score with a five-under 67, and also sits in ninth spot with Dodge Kemmer of the USA and amateurs Issa Abouelela of Egypt and home favorite Saud Abdullah Al Sharif.

With 121 players starting the 54 hole tournament, 63 are expected to make the final day, with the cut set at two-under-par. Suteepat, who has won already three times this season, just made it to the last round on the number and

England’s Joshua Grenville-Wood set a blistering pace on the first day of the PIF Saudi Open, with 12 birdies and only two dropped shots propelling him to a 10-under-par round of 62 and a three shot lead over the field.

His endeavors, which set a new course record, eclipsed an otherwise impressive start by Saudi amateur Saud Abdullah Al Sharif, the early clubhouse leader at the Riyadh Golf Club after a bogey free 65, who shares second place with Morocco’s Ahmed Marjan and Indonesia’s Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra.

It is Grenville-Wood’s second visit to Saudi Arabia, but his first playing golf. “It’s great fun out here. I love being out here in the Middle East playing golf,” he said after his round.

“I’m very pleased with my round today. Solid, stress-free golf. Hit the ball really good and just happened to make a couple of nice putts.

“I love the course,” he added. “The fairways are in really good condition, just like carpet. You can clip it off the fairways and the greens are rolling at a really nice speed. I’m really enjoying it out there.”

Ahmad Baig of Pakistan leads a group on six under at the US$200,000 Asian Development Tour event, the first tournament of its kind to be staged by the ADT in Saudi Arabia. Baig shares fifth place with amateur Issa Abouelela of Egypt and Malaysia’s Galven Green

Thailand’s Chanat Sakulpolphaisan and Benjamin Follett-Smith of Zimbabwe matched each other with scores of 67, both reaching five under with three birdies, an eagle and no dropped shots, albeit on completely different holes.

The duo share eighth place after the first round with England’s William Harold, Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines and the Thai pair of Puwit Anupansuebsai and Pisitchai Thippong.

Singapore’s Koh Deng Shan leads a group in 14th on four under par, with a single bogey offsetting a clutch of five birdies. Dodge Kemmer of the USA is also on 68 after a flawless round with four birdies on no dropped shots.

They head a truly international group which includes Harrison Gilbert of Australia, Kevin Esteve of Andorra, Sweden’s Erik Jonasson, Ahmed Reda Rhazali of Morocco, Norway’s Jarand Ekeland Arnoy, Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin and Tunisian amateur Elyes Barhoumi.

A total of 121 golfers started the event which will be played over 54 holes. The winner of the tournament, which is organised by Golf Saudi, will qualify for the 2023 edition of the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers.

The ADT season is drawing to a close, with just two more tournaments to play before the end of the year, and the Order Of Merit is still very much open. Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin, who won the Selangor Masters at the end of last month, is the best placed contender after Round One.

Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai, who has three wins already this season, was only able to post a one under 71 for his opening round, which leaves him two shots adrift of compatriot Chonlatit Chuenboonngam. China’s Chen Guxin, in fourth place in the OOM, is not teeing it up this week.

Faisal Salhab, one of Saudi Arabia’s most promising young golfers, is hoping for a repeat victory at the 2022 Saudi Open, which gets underway tomorrow at the Riyadh Golf Club, the first event on the Asian Development Tour to take place in the kingdom.

“I definitely hope to do well,” said Salhab about his expectations of playing at his home course. “I know what I’m capable of on the course and hopefully, I’m able to perform to my best abilities at the event.”

“It was nice to win at my home course and also was nice seeing friendly faces around and having that support,” he added.

His victory last season came with a total score of 11 under-par after three rounds. A total of 88 players from 27 countries took part in the tournament, which was open to both professionals and amateurs from the Middle East and North Africa.

In 2022, the event takes place from December 8-10 and is open to all of Asia, and more than 50 players will be making the journey from countries such as Thailand, Singapore and Korea. The total field will be 120 players with approximately 25 Saudis lining up in the field.

The winner of the tournament, which is organised by Golf Saudi and has a purse of $200,000, will qualify for the 2023 edition of the PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers.

Taking the field will be Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin, who won the Selangor Masters at the end of last month, together with other ADT tournament winners such as Thailand’s Suteepat Prateeptienchai who has three wins already this season and compatriot Chonlatit Chuenboonngam.

The three currently lead the ADT Order of Merit and will be seeking to take advantage of the fact that their main contender, China’s Chen Guxin will not be teeing it up tomorrow.

Australia’s Harrison Gilbert, who won the Indo Masters Golf Invitational presented by TNE in June, and Jack Murdoch will be joining the field in a clutch of international players, alongside Dodge Kemmer of the USA, Sweden’s Oscar Zetterwall and Mathias Keyser of South Africa. English players include Matt Killen and Joshua Grenville-Wood, Joe Heraty, William Harrold and David Langley.

Lloyd Jefferson Go, who has shown some strong performances this season, will be looking to finish the year on a high note, as will Japan’s Shinichi Mizuno and Indonesia’s Naraajie E. Ramadhanputra, winner of the OBGolf Invitational in Jakarta in June.

Thailand has a strong contingent in addition to Suteepat and Chonlatit, including in-form players like Sarun Sirithon, winner of the Laguna Phuket Cup in May, Nirun Sae-ueng, Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij, Denwit Boriboonsub and Chanat Sakulpolphaisan.

Salhab, Golf Saudi’s highest-ranked amateur golfer, welcomes the arrival of the Asian Development Tour to Saudi Arabia.

“I’m very happy that Saudi Arabia is getting more professional events and having the ADT come to the Kingdom is going to bring better competition and it’s good to see these type of events start happening more in Saudi Arabia,” he said.

“By having an event of this status in Saudi Arabia shows the people the quality of players around the world and for the future generations it gives them a real benchmark to strive for.”

Host venue of the Saudi Open, the Riyadh Golf Club boasts a challenging 18-hole golf course with exceptional practice facilities.

The course’s undulating terrain, wide fairways and manicured greens offer golfers a pleasurable and challenging experience but the man-made lakes and streams traversing the course will keep golfers at the top of their game.

Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin showed steely determination to clinch victory at the PKNS Selangor Masters today, shrugging off a double bogey on the par-five 13th hole to face down Thailand’s Denwit Boriboonsub at the finish.

Denwit, who started the day tied with Ariffin (275) at Kelab Golf Seri Selangor, was unable to take advantage of his playing partner’s misstep on 13, and instead posted a string of dropped shots in the closing holes as he watched his title chance slip away.

The pair, who had traded birdies and bogeys to remain in lockstep throughout most of the day at the US$150,000 Asian Development Tour event, were eventually parted in the finishing stretch. Denwit finished in second, two shots back of Ariffin with 277.

Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines briefly held second place with Denwit until a final hole bogey dropped him into a share of third with veteran Danny Chia. Malaysia’s Chia, who posted par for the day, for a closing score of 278. They were followed by Zimbabwe’s Kieran Vincent in solo fifth with 279 and Australia’s Jack Murdoch in sixth with 280.

Joe Heraty of England finished with 283 strokes and a share of seventh place, together with Singapore’s Gregory Foo and Malaysia’s Amir Nazrin. Nazrin, who was the early tournament leader after round one with a score of 65, was unable to repeat his opening day heroics and posted his third plus par score of 73.

Suteepat Prateeptienchai of Thailand rounded out the top 10 for a par tournament score of 284, followed by compatriots Chanat Sakulpolphaisan and Varanyu Rattanaphiboonkij on 285 in 11th place, together with Malaysia’s Edven Ying.

Joshua Greville-Wood of England finished in 14th spot with a score of 286, a position he shared with Thai duo Chonlatit Chuenboonngam and Puwit Anupansuebsai.

Filling the remain places in the top 20 were Kemarol Baharin and Ervin Chang of Malaysia, and Thailand’s Nirun See-ueng and Peradol Panyathanasedh, who shared 17th spot with a score of 287.

Malaysia’s Shahriffuddin Ariffin seized the initiative in round three of the PKNS Selangor Masters, posting a five-under-par score of 66 to grab a share of the lead at Kebab Golf Seri Selangor on Friday with a combined score of 205.

Denwit Boriboonsub of Thailand, who had a share of the lead at the start of play, managed to keep pace with Ariffin by posting a 68, but his fellow overnight leader Amir Nazrin of Malaysia had a disappointing day, dropping five shots in the last four hole to finish with a 73.

Lloyd Jefferson Go of the Philippines also posted a 66 to move into third place, a position he shares with Malaysia’s Danny Chia who shot 67 to make it to six under (207) for the US$150,000 Asian Development Tour event.

Australia’s Jack Murdoch scored a round of par, with just a birdie/bogey combo on the pair of par fives on the front nine and holds solo fifth on 209, followed by Nazrin in sixth with 210 shots after three rounds.

Thailand’s Sutteepat Prateeptienchai carded the low round of the day with a bogey-free score of 65 to move into seventh spot, followed by Gregory Foo of Singapore, who lost ground with a disappointing 74 to drop into solo eight spot.

Zimbabwe’s Kieran Vincent, fresh from his adventures in Africa at the International Series Morocco and International Series Egypt, moved up into ninth spot with a 69 today, and joined England’s Joe Heraty who had an up and down day but ended up with a par score to remain on 213, par score for the three days.

Malaysia’s Edvin Ying, tied for third overnight, had an unfortunate reversal of fortunes, scoring five over in his round to drop into a share of 11th, which he shares with Abdul Hadi of Singapore and Puwit Anupansuebsai of Thailand.