Thailand’s Nopparat Panichphol had a nervous wait by the 18th hole to mark his first international win at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A.

Playing in the second to last group, a fine round saw him finish with a seven under par 65 to take the clubhouse lead on -20 (268) at the Angkor Golf Resort.

With Nopparat holding a two shot lead over the rest of the field in the US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event, only Pakistan’s Ahmad Baig was in a position to spoil the party.

Baig (67) needed a par on the last to force a playoff, but a bogey dashed his hopes of a win, and the spoils that would have accompanied his third victory on the ADT this year.

A third trophy would have meant automatic promotion to the Asian Tour for the rest of the year, a battlefield promotion that has in the past elevated the likes of Pavit Tangkamolprasert, Chan Shih-chang and Tom Kim.

“I’m excited, winning for the first time internationally,” said Nopparat after his round, and acknowledged that being removed from the final group gave him freedom to play.

“For me, not being in the final group meant I could just play. I had the plan already, so I could forget about them, and the score and just focus on the shot by shot,” he said.

“My putting was very good this week. I like the greens here so much, the speed is not too fast and my stroke was firm and pure,” he added.

Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung made a determined effort to climb the leaderboard, posting a seven under par 65 to finish in third spot alongside India’s Aman Raj on 270.

Despite rain delays earlier in the week, the weather was fine for the final round, leading to many low scores among the leaders.

Low round of the day though went to Thailand’s Itthipat Buranatanyarat, whose nine-under-par 63 included one eagle, and some very close calls.

“Today everything was good,” he said after his round. “I hit one eagle from 150 yards and holed out, almost had two in a row after that, with tap in birdies.

“Nine under is the best round for me this year and its much better than the first three rounds,” he added.

In sixth place, on 272 strokes, Philippine amateur Carl Jano Corpus finished strongly with a 65, sharing the position with Kosuke Hamamoto (66), England’s Matt Killen (71), Joel Stalter of France (68) and Thailand’s Tanapat Pichaikool.

Jonathan Wijono (67) of Indonesia finished in 11th place on 273 strokes, alongside Thailand’s Witchayapat Sinsrang (68) and Poom Pattaropong (68).

India’s Arjun Prasad (70) finished in solo 14th place on 274, followed by Indonesia’s Naraajie Ramadhanputra (67) and Korea’s Minhyeok Yang (71) on 275 strokes.

The ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A was the ninth event of the year on the ADT schedule, which picks up again in five weeks time with the Ambassador ADT at Hsin Feng Golf Country Club in Chinese Taipei from November 6-9.

Main picture: Nopparat Panichphol of Thailand pictured with the winner’s trophy following his win at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

Thailand’s Tanapat Pichaikool was clearly focused on the task in hand at Angkor Golf Resort today, turning up the heat on the field to take a one shot lead into the final round of the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A.

Opening with a run of five pars after a delayed start to Round Three, Tanapat notched up four birdies before adding an eagle in his closing stretch for a six under par 66 in the US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event.

Clearly looking to add to his win on the ADT in Jakarta earlier this month, Tanapat leads England’s Matt Killen (68) by a stroke, with Pakistan’s Ahmad Baig (67) one shot further back.

“I’m just trying to focus on my swing mostly,” said Tanapat when asked about his run of form. “Otherwise my mind will blow up sometimes and then think about scores, and think about what’s next.

“What I’ve been doing recently is focus on shot by shot, play whatever is in front of me and do my best, basically,” he added.

Currently fourth in the season-long Order Of Merit rankings, Tanapat will be looking to stave off a challenge from Baig, who is lying second after two wins already this season. The current leader, India’s Rahil Gangee, is not playing this week, and Tanapat will surely overtake the third place holder Liu Yung-hua who is playing in his native Chinese Taipei this week on the Asian Tour.

Ahmad Baig of Pakistan pictured in action at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

With the ADT making its debut in Cambodia at the Angkor Golf Resort, Tanapat was full of praise for the tour breaking new ground.

“I’d like to thank the ADT and the R&A for hosting this kind of event,” he said after his round. “The kids in this country can learn and develop a lot from it. The younger generation can see what is in front of them and what they need to do to reach this level,” he added.

Thailand’s Nopparat Panichphol (66) holds fourth place at the end of Round Three, ahead of Korea’s Minhyeok Yang (66) and the overnight leaders Joel Stalter of France (72) and India’s Arjun Prasad (72).

In eighth spot, the Thai pair of Poom Pattaropong (67) and first round leader Witchayapat Sinsrang (70) sit on -11 alongside Aman Raj (68) of India and Hong Kong’s Matthew Cheung (69).

Following yesterday’s suspension due to bad weather, 42 players had an early start this morning with play restarting at 7am to finish the second round. The cut was made at -2 with 57 players ready for Round Three, which began at 9.45am off two tees.

One of those players still out on the course was Thailand’s Kosuke Hamamoto, who ending up making the cut on the number. He bounced back to post the low round of the day with nine birdies and just a single dropped shot for a sparkling 64.

“To be honest I’m just really happy to be playing on the weekend because it looked like -2 wasn’t going to make it,” he said after his round.

Kosuke Hamamoto of Thailand pictured in action at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

“I had to come out this morning and play a couple of holes to finish the second round. I bogeyed my 17th hole and fell back to two under and thought I was out of it so I’m happy to be playing the weekend and happy I played a great round today.

Starting on hole 10, he made it to nine under par after 15 holes and admitted that he did start thinking about the magic 10 under par score.

“I’m not going to lie,” he said. “It definitely popped into my head because my personal best in a tournament is a 10 under round and I guess I kind of got ahead of myself, lost focus. and bogeyed number seven.”

Play will continue tomorrow for the final round, with the first group off at 8am using two tees. The leading group of Tanapat, Baig and Killen will be teeing off at 9.39am.

The ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A was the ninth event of the year on the ADT schedule, which picks up again in five weeks time with the Ambassador ADT at Hsin Feng Golf Country Club in Chinese Taipei from November 6-9.

Main picture: Tanapat Pichaikool of Thailand pictured in action at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

India’s Arjun Prasad and Joel Stalter of France took advantage of their morning starts at Angkor Golf Resort today, sharing the clubhouse lead on 12 under par after the weather took a turn for the worse.

Lightning and thunder forced the suspension of Round Two of the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A in the early afternoon, with some of the field only just settling into their rounds.

The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event, making its debut in Cambodia, was already delayed by 20 minutes at the start of the day due to fog, and the inclement weather after lunch meant that play was halted at at 2.29pm.

The round was restarted at 4.30 after the weather cleared, but play was eventually suspended at 5.59pm due to darkness. Play will resume tomorrow when 42 players will complete Round Two.

Matt Killen of England was able to finish 15 holes before darkness set in, and he secured a hold on solo third spot at 11 under par with three holes still to play.

Thailand’s Tanapat Pichakool (64), winner of the Indonesia Pro-Am presented by Combiphar and Nomura in Indonesia earlier this month, posted the low round of the day with eight under par. He sits in fourth spot after completing his round early.

Meanwhile, secure in the clubhouse, Prasad (67) was pleased with another good round after a strong start yesterday.

“I had a good day today,” he said after posting his score. “Both of the rounds have been pretty solid. I’ve hit the ball really well off the tee and my putting was pretty good. I was able to roll a lot of my birdie putts within 10-12 feet and made some good saves today as well. Those were probably very crucial to get the momentum going,” he added

“Apart from that i had really good playing partners as well. I was playing with Poom (Pattaropong) and Gregory (Foo), they were both fantastic mates to play with. I’ve had a fun two rounds and hopefully I can keep the momentum going.

“This (ADT) is the best pathway to the Asian Tour, so performing well over here would mean a lot. If I can do that this year and get my Asian Tour card for the next season, that would be an overall amazing year,” he added.

“It’s my first time travelling over here and let me tell you the food’s been amazing, the people are great and the golf course is absolutely amazing, I really love playing over here. The track is flawless. great fairways, great greens and even though it’s been raining every single day the fairways are as good as they can be.”

Joel Stalter of France pictured in action at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

For Stalter (65), playing in Asia offers him the chance to get his game back on track after 10 years playing as a professional in Europe.

“It’s kind of a new beginning for me, playing in Asia,” he said. “I played mostly in Europe for my whole career.

“I’ve played here in the past and I thought why not give it a shot, kind of a fresh start. I’ve been struggling with my game for the past few years and so far I’ve loved it. I love coming to Asia, I love the places, the organisation and I think the Tour is doing a really great job.

“Sometimes it’s a bit challenging,” he said when asked about the change in cuisine. “I don’t go for street food for sure,” he laughed, “but the rest is OK.

“What’s a bit more difficult is the jet lag and the heat. The heat and the humidity is different, but I like it better than playing in sideways rain and three degrees.

“The courses we play every week so far have been fantastic. Hopefully I can get my game going again but I am really happy about the move.

Even with a share of the clubhouse lead, Stalter was philosophical about the prospect of winning and making progress to the Asian Tour.

“It would mean a lot just winning, without whatever comes after. For me just to prove to myself that I can win again because I have won in Europe and to win on a different continent would mean the world to me.

“I’ve been struggling but I didn’t give up and now I’m back into a position where I can start putting myself in contention again. It’s not going to happen overnight, you know, it’s golf and anything can happen, but the fact that I’m still here and in contention this week, it means a lot to me.”

Overnight leader Witchayapat Sinsrang of Thailand remains out on the course with six holes to play. He is currently in fifth place alongside Galven Green (69) of Malaysia and Pakistan’s Ahmad Baig (65).

Matthew Cheung (70) of Hong Kong and Indonesia’s Jonathan Wijono (69) are in eighth spot on eight under par, alongside Malaysia’s Marcus Lim who has three holes to play tomorrow.

Play will resume at 7am tomorrow, and the draw for the third round will be made upon completion of Round Two. Round Three will not start before 9.45am and play will be from two tees, with the leaders playing from the first tee.

Main picture: Arjun Prasad of India pictured in action at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

Thailand’s Witchayapat Sinsrang felt quite at home in changing conditions at Angkor Golf Resort today, posting an eight-under-par 64 to take a one shot lead after the first round of the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A.

With the Asian Development Tour making its debut in Cambodia with this US$100,000 tournament, the picturesque course designed by Sir Nick Faldo was there to reward accurate players, and Witchayapat took full advantage.

“I hit it good today, “ he said after his round. “My driver was in play and I think I missed like two fairways today. My approach shots were very good and I made a lot of putts,” he added.

“The golf course is in good shape,” he said. “It’s a little wet but it’s OK, I just tried to not hit it too deep and stick it into the ground.”

He was full of praise for the course and surrounds.

“I like the area,” he said. “My dad was born near the border with Thailand which is similar to here so I really like it here.”

Marcus Lim of Malaysia pictured in action at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

Also giving the course the respect it deserved was Malaysia’s Marcus Lim, who shared second place alongside India’s Arjun Prasad and Sweden’s Erik Jonasson with all three posting bogey-free rounds of seven-under 65.

They were joined on seven under by Matt Killen of England and Thailand’s Tawit Polthai.

“I had a good start,” said Lim after finishing. “I birdied the first couple of holes then from three to nine it was kind of scrambled around but I caught fire on the back nine which was good.

“My good shots were good and my bad shots were still in play so I think that was the key,” he added.

“I made a lot of putts on the back nine which was nice and I’m happy with the way i started.”

In seventh place, on six-under-par, Sarut Vongchaisit of Thailand shared the spot with Malaysia’s Galven Green and Matthew Cheung of Hong Kong, another two of the 15 players who posted blemish-free cards for the day.

In tenth spot, with five birdies each, were Indonesia’s Jonathan Wijono and Joel Stalter of France. They were joined by Vanchai Luangnitikul of Thailand, Indonesia’s Kevin Akbar, Arno Bartholemow of South Africa and the Philippine amateur Carl Jano Corpus.

Round One of the four-day tournament was completed on schedule today and play will continue for Round Two tomorrow with the first groups starting at 6.40am from two tees. The afternoon wave will get underway at 11.05 am.

Witchayapat Sinsrang of Thailand, pictured in action at the ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. The US$100,000 Asian Development Tour event is being held at the Angkor Golf Resort in Cambodia from September 25-28, 2024.

In a ground-breaking development, the Asian Development Tour (ADT) and The R&A have come together to launch an exciting and innovational new event in one of the game of golf’s emerging markets: Cambodia.

The ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A will take place at Angkor Golf Resort – the Asian Tour Destinations venue that hosted the Cambodian Classic on the Asian Tour in 2012 – from September 25-28 this year, for what will be the eighth event on the ADT schedule.

The tournament will boast prizemoney of US$100,000 and will mark the first time the ADT, the Asian Tour’s development circuit, has visited Cambodia.

Said Cho Minn Thant, Commissioner & CEO, Asian Tour, Asian Tour, said: “One of the Asian Development Tour’s missions is to aid the development of golf in countries where golf is still relatively new but has huge potential for growth.

“The ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A very clearly ticks this box, and is especially significant as we are working with our friends at The R&A – an Affiliate Partner of the Asian Tour – and Angkor Golf Resort, where we have enjoyed a long-term relationship.

“It is fair to say that the launch of this tournament is one of the most exciting developments for the Asian Development Tour in recent times and we thank The R&A and Angkor Golf Resort for making this possible.”

The tournament – an important project that will allow the ADT and The R&A to collaborate on their common goal of growing the game in the region – will provide opportunities to elite amateurs from around Asia and is expected to be the ADT’s season-opening event next year.

The R&A has also confirmed the winner will receive an invite to play in an Asian Tour event that is part of the Open Qualifying Series in 2025.

Phil Anderton, Chief Development Officer at The R&A, said, “We believe that it is important to support pathways which provide opportunities for aspiring golfers in Asia-Pacific to compete on the international stage and possibly go on to reach new heights within the sport. We look forward to working with the Asian Development Tour on this new initiative.”

The event will feature a field of 144 players, with 94 from the ADT, up to 36 invited from The R&A, and up to 14 from the Cambodia Golf Federation.

David Baron, General Manager of Angkor Golf Resort, said, “We’re delighted to be host venue for the inaugural ADT Players Championship presented by The R&A. We have fond memories of hosting the Asian Tour back in 2012 and we’re very excited to be welcoming back the next generation of golfing talent. Siem Reap has gone from strength-to-strength in recent years but this wonderful initiative from The R&A will be instrumental to raising awareness for the game of golf in the kingdom. We will use this as a platform to further enhance grass roots development in Cambodia”.

The award-winning Angkor Golf Resort ‒ which sits at the doorstep of the famous Angkor Wat Temple in Siem Reap ‒ became part of Asian Tour Destinations in 2021 and is the only Cambodian venue that is a member of the exclusive network.

The popular resort, which boasts a Sir Nick Faldo-designed 18-hole layout, is one of 13 golf clubs that are part of Asian Tour Destinations ‒ which was launched in 2020 to set up an affiliate network of premier golfing properties in the region that have direct ties with the Asian Tour.

Opened in 2008, Angkor Golf Resort, has a proven track record for hosting tournaments, including the Asian Tour event 12 years ago, where American David Lipsky triumphed.

The Resort has also hosted a stage of the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School, as well as the Faldo Series Asia Cambodian Qualifier, the Angkor Amateur Open and the Angkor Fourball championship.